PATNA: Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Monday sought Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian award, for veteran socialist leader Karpoori Thakur for championing the cause of the poor and the downtrodden.
“It is our ‘Khwahish’ that Bharat Ratna should be conferred on Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur,” Nitish, a follower of the ideals of the former Bihar CM, said in a tweet on the eve of the Republic Day and a day after celebrating the birth anniversary of the socialist leader.
Nitish in his tweet also said, “I have already sent my recommendations for conferring Bharat Ratna on Karpoori Thakur to the Centre. Similar recommendations for conferring Bharat Ratna to Karpoori Thakur were also made (to the Centre) in 2007, 2017, 2018 and 2019.”
Moreover, Nitish, almost every year while speaking on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Thakur on January 24, reiterates his demand for conferring Bharat Ratna to the veteran socialist leader. But the Centre is yet to fulfil his demand.
Nitish’s fresh demand on Monday, however, took a political colour, as his tweet came just 20 minutes after the leader of opposition in Bihar assembly Tejashwi Prasad Yadav tweet in Hindi. “Bharat Ratna for Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur is our old demand. Why is the double engine government of the NDA (at the Centre) not conferring the Bharat Ratna to Thakur, despite the NDA having 39 of the total 40 Lok Sabha members from Bihar? Is it because Thakur hailed from a socially disadvantaged class? Why does the CM not meet the PM especially for this demand?” wrote Tejashwi.
Tejashwi posted his first tweet demanding for Bharat Ratna for Karpoori Thakur at 4.04 PM on Monday. Nitish’s tweet was posted at 4.24 pm.
Soon after the CM’s tweet, Tejashwi posted another tweet claiming that the CM has given a “Dikhawati Jabab” (an artificial reply) on the issue of Bharat Ratna for Thakur.
“Nitish Ji, we understand that you are now held hostage by BJP and have been rendered incapable of even securing central status for Patna University. But, at least you should set politics aside and support our demand for Bharat Ratna to Karpoori Thakur. Would you agree to join our MPs and MLAs in a parade before the Rashtrapati to press for the demand?” Tejashwi asked the CM in a series of two tweets.