Political temperatures soar in Bihar ahead of PM's tour

Patna, Feb 23 (PTI) Political temperatures soared in Bihar on Sunday, a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's tour of Bhagalpur, from where he will disburse close to Rs 23,000 crore to nearly 100 million beneficiaries of Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana.

To oversee preparations for the PM's visit, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan arrived in the state a day in advance and interacted with farmers cultivating foxnuts, to draw a plan for the much talked about "Makhana board" announced in the recent budget.

"We took a decision that the Makhana board must be set up in consultation with farmers, who are the real stakeholders. We were not in favour of a diktat being issued from Krishi Bhavan at Delhi," Chouhan told reporters on the sidelines of the 'Makhana Panchayat' held in Darbhanga.

He also disclosed that the PM's function on Monday "will have an impact on the entire country as 9.80 crore farmers will be getting Rs 22,700 crore as yet another instalment of Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana".

The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister rubbished the allegation of RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav that the PM had chosen Bihar for the function with an eye on assembly polls which are due in a few months.

"Tejashwi should know that Modi today visited Madhya Pradesh where there are no elections. Tomorrow, after Bihar, he is scheduled to go to Assam where no polls are to be held. Our prime minister prefers being among the people to enjoying the comforts of his bungalow".

Incidentally, the charge that the PM's tour was motivated by elections has also come from Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, a former political strategist who had handled Modi's campaign in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

Talking to reporters in Patna, Kishor said, "Now that polls are due in Bihar, it is quite obvious that the PM will set his eyes on the state.

Earlier, he was busy with Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Haryana." However, Union Minister Chirag Paswan, who heads BJP ally Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and represents Bihar's Hajipur Lok Sabha seat, was of the view that Modi's visit was "proof that our state is his priority".

"We saw in the Union budget how much importance was given to Bihar. I am looking forward to attending the PM's function," said Paswan.

He also expressed surprise over Independent MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav's call for a 'bandh' in his Purnea Lok Sabha constituency and some adjoining areas on Tuesday.

Yadav, who has sought to press the demand that the Makhana Board be set up in Purnea, has also warned that "if need be, we will block train traffic between Delhi and Purnea and Katihar".

The mercurial MP alleged that the interests of Bihar, especially the Seemanchal region, were being compromised by the BJP, but Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U), was unable to register a protest.

"JD(U) has become infested with agents (Vibhishan) loyal to the BJP. Now the party can be saved only if the CM's son agrees to take over the reins of that party," said Yadav.

Paswan, however, was of the view "it is not proper to engage in disruptive politics when the PM and the double engine government of Bihar are working together to bring the state into the mainstream of national progress".

About speculations around the entry into politics of the CM's son Nishant, Paswan, the third-term MP who is roughly the same age, said, "why not? But it is a decision that he and the JD(U) have to take". PTI NAC BDC

Source: PTI