With the Monsoon session of the Parliament ticking off last month, the next big political event of the country is set to unfold in Bihar. The legislative elections to the 243-member constituent Assembly are symbolically huge and the stakes are high. The politically charged atmosphere partly explains why the national parties have already come to verbal blows and resorted to scathing attacks, apart from pleasing the electorate.
An FIR and counting
A week ago, police in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district registered an FIR against RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav for tweeting an allegedly objectionable post against PM Narendra Modi.
Yadav, former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister, shared a cartoon along with a post ahead of the PM’s visit to Gaya, in Bihar. “Today, once again a shop of lies and false promises and slogans will be set up in Gaya. The PM will erect a mountain of lies and slogans but the people of Bihar will see through and break these mountains like Dashrath Manjhi. Will you give accountability for the past 11 years and 20 years of the NDA government?,” he wrote in Hindi much to the outrage of BJP supporters.
What would have been set aside as yet another satire-filled attack on the government in power, invited an FIR on the complaint filed by BJP MLA Milind Narote. Reacting to the FIR, the RJD leader said he wasn’t scared of FIR. “Who is scared of an FIR? Saying the word ‘jumla’ has also become a crime. They fear the truth. We are not scared of any FIR and we speak the truth.” The political sledging meant to provoke and offend isn’t restricted to one outfit or leader but cuts across party lines.
Political tensions, clash
This is not the only controversy since the political rallies and campaigning began in the state. Last week, things escalated in the poll-bound state after workers from the BJP and Congress engaged in a violent clash. The altercation occurred during a protest organised by the BJP to condemn derogatory language used by a man against PM Modi and his late mother during Vote Adhikar Yatra. The video that went viral shows a worker using derogatory language in the absence of Rahul Gandhi. The issue was raked up by Home Minister Amit Shah who asked for an apology from Rahul Gandhi for the same. “He must apologise to Modiji, to his late mother and to the people of this country.”
A cap, a controversy and communal angle
Amidst the allegation and counter-allegations, a communal controversy did not get left out either. Last week, Bihar’s incumbent CM Nitish Kumar stirred a political row for refusing to wear a skull cap offered to him at a Madarsa event in Patna.
During his already held rallies in Bihar, PM Modi emphasised the threat of illegal immigrants, and accused Congress and RJD of undermining citizens’ rights to strengthen their voter base, while indulging in a generous dose of catchphrases and sloganeering too.
Precisely similar allegations have been made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the ‘vote chori’ scam which garnered significant international attention.
A few days ago, as Rahul Gandhi’s Vote Adhikar Yatra reached Bhagalpur, the Congress leader mounted his criticism of the PM by saying, “The entire nation knows he steals votes and he and EC work in collusion.”
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A statement vehemently supported by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, who joined the Vote March in Arrah on its penultimate day on August 30 and called the EC ‘Jugaad Aayog.’ As he further trained his guns at both BJP and the Election Commission, he alleged that, “Everyone knows who bullies the opposition and who is afraid of US President Donald Trump.”
In his speech, the SP chief also threw his weight behind RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, who has been declared as the chief ministerial face of the INDIA bloc. During the rally in Arrah, Tejshwai Yadav slammed Nitish Kumar for “copying” his policies and called him a “copycat CM.”
“Do you want an original CM or a duplicate?” he asked amid loud jeers and cheers from the crowd. The people, regardless of whether they know it or not, would prefer a hardworking, selfless CM. But in the meanwhile, the public seems to be inundated with rallies and campaigns and not so much executive work.
Also entering the fray in the coming days is Bahujan Samajwadi Party chief Mayawati, who declared that her party will be contesting the upcoming polls on its own. While finalising the roadmap, the former UP CM took to her social media accounts to declare that the parties and public meetings, yatras and campaign scheduled to begin early next month will be conducted under her direct supervision. Will the speech once again contain populist political rhetoric, mud-slinging, blame game and sloganeering? Well, going by the track record of Indian politics, it’s an absolute yes.
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