Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took a dig at rival Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad over his controversial “beef eating” comment, while invoking youth power to change government in Bihar.
In Gujarat y aduvanshis (people of yadav caste) have brought white revolution while rearing cows and “Amul” has been possible only because of the yaduvanshis .
“But, here (in Bihar) we don’t know what he (Lalu Prasad) has eaten up…he has derogated yaduvanshis . Don’t forget that it was the yaduvanshis had supported you and took to the power”, Mr. Modi said while addressing his first among four rallies on Thursday at Munger.
Earlier, the RJD president had stoked a controversy saying “Hindus also eat beef.” He, however, withdrew his statement. “I keep cows and worship cows”, Mr. Prasad said.
Insisting that Mr. Prasad cannot absolve himself of his beef remarks by claiming that it was the “devil” (shaitan) on his tongue which made him say it, Mr. Modi said, “I want to know how the shaitan got the address (of Lalu)...he recognises that it was the shaitan in a similar manner as people recognise their relatives.”
Ridiculing Mr. Prasad’s remarks that it was the “devil under whose influence” he made the beef remarks, Mr. Modi said “so far we were fighting (political rivals) human beings. Now a shaitan has entered a human body which is after us.
Mr. Modi tried to make a connection with the youth force and appealed to them to throw the present government out of power for the “development of the State”.
“It is only you who can change the fate of Bihar”, he said.
Mr. Modi also invoked the fear of the “jungle Raj” of the previous RJD regime in Bihar and said this assembly poll is being fought on a “Jungle Raj Vs Development raj” basis.
He also said that during “jungle raj” the biggest industry in Bihar was “kidnapping”. “According to a Bihar government report between January to July this year there were 4,000 cases of kidnapping in Bihar,” Mr. Modi said.
He also slammed the Congress party saying the party has lost its force and potential in the State. “These days the Congress party is coming in the battle field only through the back-door (with the support of regional parties).”
He also reiterated how Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had cheated the people of the State after promising 24-hour electricity to the State during the 2010 assembly poll but “not fulfilling them yet”.
“But my government has taken a pledge to provide electricity to every village by 2022,” he said.
Mentioning the Rs 1.65 lakh crore package announced by him earlier, Mr. Modi said he announced the package with all “details, sincerity and responsibility”.
He also recalled how both Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad, being the railway ministers had failed to get the local Munger Bridge completed and how they failed to utilise the money given from the Central government to the state for development.
Mr. Modi also used the death anniversary of Jayaprakash Narayan to attack Mr. Kumar and Mr. Prasad saying those who once sang paeans of the socialist leader have now joined hands with Congress which had sent JP behind bars during Emergency.
