Patna, May 8 (IANS) Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav on Friday launched a scathing attack on the NDA government in Bihar over the expansion of the cabinet led by Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary.
Addressing a press conference at the Karpoori Auditorium located inside the state office of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Tejashwi alleged that the newly expanded cabinet lacked both developmental vision and social balance.
Tejashwi claimed that the NDA had spent nearly half of the last six months merely on the process of government formation.
“In just six months, Bihar has seen two Chief Ministers and four Deputy Chief Ministers. Yesterday’s cabinet expansion reflected neither vision nor developmental thinking,” he said.
He further alleged that the BJP and JD(U) had no moral authority to criticise dynastic politics.
Tejashwi specifically targeted the induction of Nishant Kumar, son of Nitish Kumar, and Deepak Prakash, son of Upendra Kushwaha, into the cabinet.
He questioned how individuals who had never contested elections or secured a public mandate could be appointed ministers.
“During election campaigns, Prime Minister Narendra Modi often spoke about ‘Shahzadas.’ Now, BJP and JD(U) leaders should explain who the real ‘Shahzadas’ are,” Tejashwi remarked.
He also alleged that 17 ministers in the new cabinet came from political families, including the sons of former Chief Ministers Nitish Kumar, Jitan Ram Manjhi, and Jagannath Mishra.
Tejashwi also condemned the police action against TRE-4 aspirants in Patna, where protesting candidates demanding the release of the teacher recruitment notification were subjected to a lathi-charge.
He alleged that the government was suppressing the voices of unemployed youth demanding jobs.
“When students demanded employment, they were met with batons. This government wants to crush the demands of youth through force,” he said.
The RJD leader further claimed that the cabinet expansion failed to maintain regional, caste, and social balance.
According to him, several communities, such as Nai, Amat, Noniya, Chaurasia, Beldar, Dangi, and Dhobi, did not receive representation.
Only one Muslim minister was included in the cabinet, and women did not receive 33 per cent representation in the ministry.
Tejashwi contrasted this with earlier RJD governments led by Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi, claiming that Muslim representation had been significantly higher during their tenure.
Tejashwi alleged that Bihar currently lacked governance focused on education (padhai), healthcare (dawai), employment (kamai), irrigation (sichai), public grievance redressal (sunwai), and administrative action (karwai).
He also accused the government of failing to control crime and claimed that caste-based targeting and encounters were taking place in the state.
The opposition leader further questioned the NDA government regarding the Srijan scam, the Muzaffarpur shelter home case, and alleged irregularities linked to NEET-related matters in Bihar.
He alleged that the real culprits in these cases had not yet been brought to justice.
Tejashwi also criticised the government over issues including delayed salary payments, delayed pension disbursements, and housing schemes for the poor.
Concluding his address, Tejashwi Yadav said the RJD would launch a statewide agitation campaign focusing on unemployment, governance failures, caste discrimination, corruption, and public welfare issues.
Several senior RJD leaders, including Mangani Lal Mandal, Uday Narayan Chaudhary, Tanveer Hasan, Alok Kumar Mehta, and Shivchandra Ram, were also present during the press conference.
–IANS
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