Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday claimed that the National Democratic Alliance government headed by him put an end to frequent Hindu-Muslim clashes in the state by taking measures such as fencing graveyards and bringing to justice those named in communal riots.
The longest-serving chief minister of Bihar, who would seek a fifth consecutive term in office in assembly polls due later this year, was replying to a debate on a motion of thanks to the governor's address to the joint session of the bicameral legislature.
Opposition members began raising angry slogans, as soon as the Janata Dal-United president said, by way of an introductory remark, "Before we came to power in 2005, the law and order situation was so pathetic that people feared going out of their homes after dusk. Bad roads also made commutes difficult."
The 74-year-old got miffed over the ruckus and told the opposition members in an admonitory tone, "You people are children. Do you know what was the situation back then?"
Pointing towards Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav, Kumar said, "Even he is a child", and raised his finger in the direction of the press gallery to remark, "Ask the journalists if you want to know how bad things were back then."
When Yadav rose to interject, he was upbraided by Kumar with the remark, "You know nothing. Your father owes his political career to the support I had extended, notwithstanding opposition from people of your own caste."
The allusion was to Lalu Prasad, the Rashtriya Janata Dal president, who became the leader of the opposition in the assembly in the 1980s, upon the death of OBC stalwart Karpoori Thakur.
The rise of Prasad, who later became the chief minister of Bihar, was seen as a victory of a young and aggressive camp in the Janata Dal, which then included Kumar.
The CM, who has been a Bharatiya Janata Party ally for most part of his career, also indirectly referred to the RJD-Congress combine with the remark, "Earlier, the state was always plagued by clashes between Hindus and Muslims. Those who used to get Muslim votes could never put an end to this. When I took over, disputes over land meant for graveyards (kabristan) was identified as a major factor."
Fencing of thousands of graveyards was, therefore, carried out, with the government bearing the entire expenses. The government also brought to justice all those who were said to have been involved in the Bhagalpur riots (of 1989). This is how the government put an end to Hindu-Muslim clashes, Kumar said.
Soon afterwards, opposition MLAs staged a walkout and the CM taunted them with the remark, "After the elections, we will be back and they will be decimated. They have run away because they neither know nor understand anything."
The JD-U supremo, who had quit the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) last year to return to the NDA, asserted 'we are together again and will remain so', even as he accused Yadav, his former deputy, of wrongdoing (tum gadbad kar rahe the).
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