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Nitish under fire for issuing special pass to BJP legislator to bring his son stuck in Kota

The BJP legislator from Hisua seat in Nawada district Anil Singh was issued a special vehicle pass by the sub-divisional office, Nawada Sadar on 15 April.

Nitish under fire for issuing special pass to BJP legislator to bring his son stuck in Kota

The vehicle pass issued to BJP MLA. (SNS)

Even as Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has been preaching through the media that the bringing back students or labourers stuck in other states will defeat the lockdown purpose, his own government has issued a special vehicle pass to a ruling BJP legislator to bring his son back from Rajasthan. The move has exposed the “double-standard” of the Bihar government, inviting bitter criticism from the Opposition and the common men alike.

The BJP legislator from Hisua seat in Nawada district Anil Singh was issued a special vehicle pass by the sub-divisional office, Nawada Sadar on 15 April. The letter, issued by the Confidential Section of the local district administration categorically mentioned that the pass was issued to “bring back son (of the honourable BJP legislator) stuck in Kota (in Rajasthan)”. The legislator was given 10 days time—from 16 April to 25 April—to bring back his son from Kota.

However, the legislator completed the task in just three days. He left for Kota on the morning of 16 April and reached Patna on 18 April. This happened at a time when Bihar chief minister had strongly opposed the move by the UP government to send buses to Kota to bring back students stuck in their hostels due to lockdown and several students returning to their homes were stopped on the Bihar-UP border and extensively screened before allowing their entry.

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On the other hand, the BJP legislator straightway reached his home without following any mandatory screening at the border, it is alleged. “I didn’t do any wrong; rather anyone who want to go to Kota to bring back their children should be issued such passes,” the legislator told the local media on Sunday.

Very strangely, the vehicle pass issued to the BJP legislator was issued at a time when the Bihar chief secretary Deepak Kumar, through an official letter sent to the Home Secretary, Government of India, Ajay Bhalla had asked the latter to warn the Kota district magistrate for “violating the guidelines issued by the MHA for movement of people in the country”.

“Kindly refer to our telephonic conversation. In utter violation of guidelines issued by the MHA vide letter no 40-3/2020-DM-1(A), MHA dated 29th March 2020, the District Magistrate, Kota has been issuing private vehicle passes for transportation of people to Bihar. It is also worthwhile to mention that Kota has forty (40) confirmed corona cases and therefore, such movement from Kota is not at all advisable in the present scenario,” the Bihar chief secretary mentioned in his letter.

This letter was written on 13 April, just two days before the BJP legislator was issued a special pass to bring his son back.

He said Bihar is now medically examining the returning students, as well as the guardians accompanying them, and instructions are being issued to quarantine them. “This unprecedented situation could have been easily avoided by strict enforcement of lockdown in Kota,” the chief secretary said. He added the government of Bihar had repeatedly been highlighting the strict implementation of lockdown by other states on more than one occasion. “Earlier we had to tackle unprecedented influx of returning migrant workers because of poor implementation by other states,” he added.

The opposition slammed the Nitish government for this move. “See the double standard of Nitish Kumar in treating two sets of people. He was saying the UP CM should not have granted permission to the buses to bring back students stuck in Kota but now his own government issued a pass to an MLA to bring back his son,” mocked Bihar opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav. Not only this MLA, many VIPs and officials too were issued such passes by the government. “Phanse becahara gharib (only the poor got stuck)”, said Yadav.

Poll strategist and former JD-U vice-president Prashant Kishor too mounted heavy attack on the chief minister for his “hypocrisy”.

“Nitishji had summarily rejected the appeal of the hundreds of students stuck in Kota saying granting permission to bring them back will make total mockery of nationwide lockdown. Now his own MLA has been granted special permission to bring his son back home. Nitishji ab apki maryada kya kahti hai (What does your conscience say Nitishji)?” asked Kishor.

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