Prashant Kishor
All major Opposition parties in Bihar have backed poll strategist and expelled JD(U) leader Prashant Kishor’s Baat Bihar Ki initiative to connect with people on issues related to the youth and development at the panchayat level.
Kishor has cited data from NITI Aayog, the HRD Ministry and the Bihar government to show how the state is poorly placed on count of 18 indices.
The RJD said that what Kishor is saying now, it has been saying all along. The party’s Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Kumar Jha told The Indian Express, “It is an indication of what we have been saying all along. It was during UPA I that money flow started from the Centre to Bihar and other states. RJD had a strong presence in the government then….Every number has a story. Kishor has now said that the idea of Nitish Kumar’s development is flat. But he should have more clarity.” Asked if RJD is endorsing Kishor’s line of attack of Nitish, Jha said, “In fact, Kishor is endorsing points often made by our Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav.”
RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha, a Grand Alliance constituent, was more forthright in his support. “Kishor has reflected feelings of the entire state. We now have to look for next level of development. Kishor’s policies and strategies could be a vehicle for change in Bihar.”
State Congress president Madan Mohan Jha said, ‘We fully endorse what Kishor has brought to public domain. The data shows that people of the state stand cheated on the model of governance being flaunted by Nitish Kumar.” HAM (S) spokesperson Danish Rizwan said, “Kishor has the DNA of Bihar and we support him. After all, he has been talking about ways in which Bihar can develop to another level and how Nitish Kumar’s model of growth is flat and too conventional.”
JD (U)’s Rajya Sabha MP R C P Singh, who had frequent clashes of opinions with Kishor when he was in the party, said, “Nitish Kumar does not need anyone’s certificate. The person (Kishor) should go to villages to measure development…”