PATNA: Union home minister and BJP’s master strategist Amit Shah’s conspicuous absence from electioneering in Bihar’s threephase assembly polls, has taken the state’s political circles and observers by surprise. Shah is in West Bengal for the last two days to set BJP’ strategy for the polls due in that state next year.
“Shah Ji did not campaign in the state due to health reasons, but the party has been working on the strategy he had made way back in January this year itself,” state BJP spokesman Prem Ranjan Patel said. The senior BJP leader’s last engagement in Bihar was the launch of the party’s first virtual rally on June 7.
Earlier, Shah had come to Patna on a two-day visit to Bihar on January 16 and also addressed a public meeting at Vaishali to explain the Centre’s position on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR).
“Be it the Vaishali rally or the virtual meeting, he said that Nitish Kumar will be the NDA’s CM,” Patel added. PM Narendra Modi held 12 physical rallies in the state, beginning October 23 till November 3.
Curiously, Shah’s name figured in the list of the party’s star campaigners along with PM Modi, party president J P Nadda, defence minister Rajnath Singh, and Nitin Gadkari, besides UP CM Yogi Adityanath and former Jharkhand CMs Raghubar Das and Babu Lal Marandi, among others. The list was prepared on October 11. “Shah has said in West Bengal that the NDA will form its government with Nitish Kumar as CM.
The party’s frontline leaders from PM Modi and Nadda onwards have campaigned for the NDA candidates. No issue should be made out of Shah’s absence from campaigning,” JD(U) spokesman Rajiv Ranjan Prasad said.
Incidentally, Shah had tested positive for Covid-19 on August 2 and was advised to rest to increase his immunity level.
At the sidelines of the BJP’s function in Bankura district in Bengal he told a TV channel, “The NDA will form its government in the state winning a good majority in the assembly polls. CM Nitish Kumar has erased all the ‘pratichhaya (image)’ of jungle raj (euphemism for crime and anarchy under the RJD rule of Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi) in the state.”
Noting that the Congress-led UPA had discriminated against Bihar, he added, “PM Narnedra Modi provided every assistance to Bihar and Nitish Kumar also did good work. People of the state will take notice of it and will give a good majority to the NDA to form its government.”