Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, opposed the confidence motion moved by Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, saying it went against the NDA’s poll promise. He said that during the Assembly elections, the BJP repeatedly invoked Nitish Kumar with the slogan “25 se 30, phir se Nitish,” but has now “finished” him.
The RJD leader launched a sharp attack, alleging that the BJP had already decided on its Chief Minister and systematically removed Nitish Kumar from the post. He said that had this decision been announced earlier, there would have been no need to convene a special session of the Assembly.
Tejashwi alleged that Nitish Kumar was forced out through internal pressure, harassment and humiliation. He added that if Nitish Kumar had to step down, he could have said so during the elections.
“But he never said this during the campaign. Rather, we were the ones saying that the BJP would not allow him to remain Chief Minister. We knew the BJP would not let Nitish Kumar continue as Chief Minister for long,” he said.
In a sarcastic comment, he remarked that leaders in the current government come from different political backgrounds and none of them come from the “BJP’s school.”
He said, “Samrat Choudhary comes from Lalu Yadav’s school, Vijay Choudhary from Congress, and Bijendra Yadav from Janata Dal. None of them comes from the BJP’s school.”
Taking a dig at Samrat Choudhary, Tejashwi also said that there is a nationwide discussion about the Bihar Chief Minister’s real age and educational qualifications.
He also said the state has become an “odd state,” with five governments in five years, and accused the NDA of failing to provide stability despite being in power for two decades, which, he said, has impacted the state’s growth.
Expressing concern over the state’s financial condition, Tejashwi Yadav said that, according to NITI Aayog, Bihar is among the most backward states. He alleged that the government took loans exceeding Rs 40,000 crore before the elections and an additional Rs 12,000 crore afterwards.
“Today, Bihar has a debt of around Rs 4 lakh crore. If the treasury is empty, how will development work take place?” he asked.
Tejashwi said the RJD is ready to support the government in efforts to lift Bihar out of poverty and bring it among the top states. He suggested that the opposition should also be consulted on decisions related to development.
On the issue of women’s reservation, he demanded a separate reservation for OBC women and said the cap on reservations should also be reconsidered.