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Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary has said it is up to Bihar to decide if it wants a family of “criminals” to lead it or a “clean and capable” leader like Nitish Kumar at the helm. Choudhary’s suggestion that Nitish Kumar will lead the NDA comes amid an attack by the opposition that the ruling alliance will not be going with him as the chief minister if it returns to power in Bihar after the assembly elections. On the Mahagathbandhan choosing RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as its CM face, Choudhary said the people of Bihar have witnessed what happened in Uttar Pradesh when Mulayam Singh Yadav made his son (Akhilesh Yadav) the leader of the state. “Now, it is up to Bihar’s people to decide whether they want to hand over power to a criminal family or to a clean and capable leader like Nitish Kumar ji,” Choudhary told News18 in an exclusive interview. Once again attacking the RJD over its “jungle raj” politics, he said Lalu Prasad failed to deliver development despite being in power for 15 years. “His tenure was defined by corruption and propaganda rather than progress and good governance,” he said. The BJP leader said RJD has simply manipulated the Congress into supporting Tejashwi’s bid for CM, while Mukesh Sahani has declared himself as a claimant to the deputy post. He said there is a “strong partnership” between the BJP and JD(U), which is contesting an equal number of seats in the upcoming polls. “The BJP and JDU are working together like twin brothers to strengthen Bihar’s future; Nitish Kumar has previously formed the government with the BJP twice and became chief minister, even when his party had fewer seats than the BJP. This shows the BJP’s commitment to ensuring stability and development in Bihar,” he said. The BJP’s election campaign in Bihar has solely focused on drawing a comparison between the RJD regime and the NDA government. Painting Lalu Prasad’s family as “villains”, the saffron party has claimed that Nitish Kumar is the “hero”. The BJP has highlighted how the RJD “plundered Bihar, worsened its economic condition, and destroyed its prosperity”. In fact, on Saturday (October 25), at a poll rally in Khagaria, Union Home Minister Amit Shah urged the voters to elect a government committed to development and law and order, warning against the return of ‘jungle raj’ if the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan comes to power. “We have worked to free Bihar from Naxalism. This election is the one that will decide whether to bring back ‘jungle raj’ to Bihar or the rule of development. Do you want ‘jungle raj’? If the Lalu’s Rabri government comes to power, ‘jungle raj’ will also come with it. If the NDA government is formed, a developed Bihar will be recognised throughout India. Use your vote wisely,” Shah said. The voting for the 243-seat Bihar assembly will be held in two phases on November 6 and 11, while the results will be declared on November 14.
