Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on August 11 asserted that his newly formed government will “deliver” on the promise of providing 10 lakh jobs that he had made while spearheading the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) campaign during the Assembly elections in 2020.
Mr. Yadav claimed that his boss Nitish Kumar, with whom he took oath the day before, has issued instructions to the officials concerned to accord “top priority” to job creation.
JD(U) leader Kumar took oath as Bihar Chief Minister for the eighth time on August 10. The development took place a day after Mr. Kumar snapped ties with the BJP-led NDA and joined hands with the RJD and other Opposition parties, including the Congress, to form a ‘Mahagathbandhan’ government.
“There are so many vacant posts in government Departments. We will begin by filling these up. Just for the time till we become fully functional after proving a majority on the floor of the assembly”, Mr. Yadav told a news channel.
It was not just a promise but an acknowledgement of the crying need for employment generation in Bihar, the Deputy Chief Minister said.
“We cannot think of going back on it since people had showered their blessings in the elections in which the RJD-led alliance polled only about 12,000 votes less, across all 243 Assembly seats than the NDA”, he recalled.
The RJD heir apparent also blamed the BJP for the “negative perception” about his party which is often accused of the use of muscle power, resulting in bad law and order.
“The problem is we do not know how to do publicity for ourselves. The BJP, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is adept at publicity. But the people will see through their allegations once they get to see the performance of our government”, said Mr. Yadav.
Agreeing with the contention of the JD(U) that the BJP was trying to split it despite being an alliance partner, the RJD leader said “Nitish Kumar ji was under so much pressure…..they [BJP] were trying to do in Bihar what they have done in all States. Intimidate or lure with money”.
“While sharing power, the BJP did not accommodate even small requests such as central status for Patna University which Nitish Kumar ji had urged the PM to confer in public view. Forget about special status, special economic package, and a package for flood-hit areas”, he alleged.
Asked about BJP leaders raking up past acrimony between Mr. Kumar and his father Lalu Prasad, he shot back “and why did they join hands with the JD(U) in 2017 after so much venom was spewed by them against Nitish Kumar ji? Even the Prime Minister had made the infamous DNA jibe”.
“Was it not the Prime Minister, again, who had recently called Nitish Kumar ji a true socialist?” He should be happy that the CM is now heading a government in collaboration with ideological peers, Mr. Yadav remarked, tongue in cheek.
“We all are socialists, at heart. We may fight, but we will stay together”, he added, rubbishing speculations of the early collapse of the government because of internal contradictions.
“The term Mahagathbandhan came into being when Nitish Kumar ji had joined hands with Lalu Prasad ji. We are very happy that he is back with us”, said the 33-year-old leader, who had made his debut in the 2015 Assembly polls and was made the Deputy CM of the Grand Alliance government.
