Modi begins poll blitz in Bihar, says NDA will notch up big win

Highlights

People asked to keep the RJD-Cong combine at bay

Samastipur/Begusarai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday blazed through poll-bound Bihar with back-to-back rallies in Samastipur and Begusarai districts, calling upon voters to keep at bay the opposition RJD-Congress combine led by "people out on bail" and predicting a record-breaking victory for the NDA.

The PM also sought to underscore the contrast between a fractious INDIA bloc and the cohesive BJP-led coalition, which included Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), Lok Janshakti Party and Hindustani Awam Morcha headed by Union ministers Chirag Paswan and Jitan Ram Manjhi, respectively, besides Rashtriya Lok Morcha headed by Rajya Sabha MP Upendra Kushwaha.

The 243-member Bihar Assembly will go to polls in two phases on November 6 and 11, with results set to be announced on November 14. Seeking to draw a contrast between a “fractured” opposition INDIA bloc and the “cohesive” NDA, Modi said the BJP-led coalition, which included Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) led by Chirag Paswan, Hindustani Awam Morcha headed by Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha led by Upendra Kushwaha, was united and focused on development.

All the alliance partners were present at the PM's rally in Samastipur, where he also took exception to "stealing of the epithet Jan Nayak" (people's hero), of late used for Rahul Gandhi by Congress workers, even though it was largely associated with Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur, whose native village he visited before addressing the rally.

Reaching out to young voters, Modi said, "It was in October 2005 that your parents had brought 'jungle raj' (rule of RJD-Congress) to an end. Exactly 20 years later, you have a big responsibility on your shoulders, to facilitate prosperity (samriddhi) by voting in favour of good governance (sushasan)".

Modi underscored the fact that the NDA was fighting the assembly polls "under the leadership of Nitish Kumar", in an apparent rebuttal of the opposition charge that after the elections, the BJP was planning to replace the 75-year-old JD(U) president, who is seeking a record fifth consecutive term in office.

The PM also highlighted that the BJP has been able to retain power in states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana, as also Maharashtra, where it was heading a coalition government, and hoped "the NDA will break all previous records in the Bihar polls".

The prime minister took a swipe at the INDIA bloc, calling it a "Mahalathbandhan" (grand alliance where partners beat each other with sticks), a wordplay on 'Mahagathbandhan'.

He also alleged that leaders of the RJD and the Congress, the two largest constituents of the INDIA bloc, were "most corrupt and out on bail", and, despite having been out of power for decades, they were arrogant enough to snub alliance partners like JMM, and "take for a ride" the Vikassheel Insaan Party, which did not get a favourable share of seats but its founder Mukesh Sahni has been promised the deputy CM's post.