Lonely Nitish seeks 'wages' from Bihar's voters for work done

Facing a tough electoral challenge, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is seeking his ‘mazdoori’ (wages) in the form of votes for his work ‘in ensuring peace and harmony, development and establishing the rule of law that brought about a marked change’ in the state.

With campaigning picking up ahead of the last phase of polls in Bihar on May 12, Kumar on Thursday appealed to supporters with folded hands to give him his mazdoori in return for governance and development in Bihar.

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“I have come to seek the wages for my work. Now it is for you to support on the basis of my work and development, not on hearsay,” has been a mandatory line in Kumar’s speeches as he addressed campaign rallies in Gopalganj, East and West Champaran, and Siwan parliamentary constituencies in the past two days.

Six Lok Sabha seats including Siwan, Gopalganj, Vaishali, Valmikinagar, West Champaran and East Champaran will go to polls on Monday.

Kumar also cautions the electorate to be wary of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal, “as they only brought destruction in the state”.

“It is an old saying that society rises to pay back the people who work with dedication. I ensured inclusive growth in the state with a vision of development with justice. It is time that I get the wages for my work,” Kumar repeatedly reminds people during the election meetings.

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With BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi aggressively focusing on Bihar to bag as many of the state's 40 Lok Sabha seats with ally Lok Janshakti Party and Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav looking to consolidate his Yadav-Muslim support base, Kumar, who is virtually fighting a lone battle, tells the people that this election is crucial “as there are forces trying to derail the development of Bihar”.

“If my government is pushed into a ditch, this state will be left to God’s mercy. I am reminding the people that a big mandate for the Janata Dal-United will ensure fast-paced development. But if that does not happen, then the state government will be shaken,” he also says.

Kumar also doesn’t forget to point out that top leaders of other political parties are approaching the people, soliciting support for their wards and relatives, to better their poll prospects, but he seeks support only to serve better the 10.5 crore people of Bihar.

“We have connected most of the villages with district headquarters, towns and Patna, constructed 14,000 bridges -- both big and small -- over all major rivers to allow access to people,” he points out.

He has been promising the people that by 2015, power will be fed to every house and power grids will be set up for every village with 100 dwellings or more.

“At present 16 to 24 hours of power supply is being maintained in all areas of the state where transmission lines are available,” he says, adding that “Bihar would produce 4,000 MW of electricity by next year”.

Kumar makes it clear that Bihar had developed despite limited resources because of the support of the people. “Thanks to development, Bihar is being counted among the fastest growing states,” he says.

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He targets Lalu Prasad, saying that nobody was safe in Bihar during his 15-year rule.

“Those were the dark days which are still fresh in the people’s memories,” he says.

“Now people are sleeping in the open in rural areas, moving without fear. This is the change we have brought about,” he says.

He also says that he and his party are committed to fight till the central government accords a special status to Bihar. “Special status is our right,” he says.

He also attacks Narendra Modi, saying that a person cannot lead the country if he does not enjoy the trust and support of minorities.