People of Bihar in no mood to tolerate Lalu's family again: BJP

New Delhi, Oct 24 (IANS) Reacting to the declaration of RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as Mahagathbandhan Chief Ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar Assembly election, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister and BJP leader Jaiveer Singh on Friday said the people of Bihar are “not in a mood to tolerate Lalu’s family once again.”

Speaking to IANS, Jaiveer Singh said, “The entire state of Bihar witnessed what it was like 20 years ago — the jungle raj, hooliganism, looting, and illegal land encroachments that defined Lalu’s era. The people of Bihar remember it well. The consequences of that era are still visible in Tejashwi Yadav. The people of Bihar are certainly not in a state of mind to tolerate Lalu’s family once again.”

Congress MP Sukhdev Bhagat, however, defended the Mahagathbandhan’s decision, saying, “Tejashwi Yadav has already served as Deputy Chief Minister and has the political experience needed for leadership. The INDI Alliance has fulfilled its responsibility by declaring its Chief Ministerial candidate. Now it’s the NDA’s turn to declare theirs, but they won’t do it because they continue to betray Nitish Kumar. Through your platform, I urge them to officially announce Nitish Kumar as their Chief Ministerial face.”

RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha also reacted and said, “We are aware of our actions, and we haven’t made any mistakes. Just wait a few more days; a big message reflecting the ground reality will come soon. Tejashwi Yadav being the face of the Mahagathbandhan is a universal truth.”

He added, “However, we also need to look at the other side. We don’t want Bihar to become like Maharashtra, where elections were fought under one leadership and later the Chief Minister was made Deputy CM. Bihar is not Maharashtra; clarity is essential.”

Meanwhile, the name of Tejashwi Yadav as the Chief Ministerial face was declared during the joint press conference of the alliance in Hotel Maurya, Patna.

The announcement was made by former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in the presence of leaders of the alliance constituent partners.

“Tejashwi Yadav is young and a man of commitment. He has fulfilled all the commitments he had promised. He has a long career. Hence, we have decided to contest this election under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav. He will be our Chief Ministerial face,” Gehlot had said.

Gehlot also announced Mukesh Sahani as the face for the Deputy Chief Minister's post.

The decision comes after a prolonged dispute among the constituent partners -- particularly between the RJD and the Congress -- over seat-sharing arrangements and the CM face.

According to the final formula, the RJD will contest 143 seats, maintaining its strong presence on the ground, especially among the Muslim-Yadav (MY) voter base.

The Grand Alliance had faced heavy criticism for failing to resolve internal differences even as the nomination deadlines for the second phase approached.

The primary deadlock arose due to the Congress party’s demand to contest 70 seats, the same number it contested in the 2020 Assembly elections -- a performance year in which it won only 19 seats, registering a strike rate of just 27 per cent.

--IANS

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