Tejashwi Yadav Critiques Bihar Government Following By-Election Loss

Tejashwi Yadav's Strong Criticism of the Ruling Alliance

In Patna on August 4, Tejashwi Yadav, a prominent leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), launched a fierce critique against the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar. He attributed the 'significant defeat' of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Bankipur assembly by-election to the 'negative politics' of Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary. During a press conference, Yadav, who serves as the Leader of the Opposition in the assembly, stated, 'Since Samrat Chaudhary took office as Chief Minister, the BJP has faced two electoral defeats in the state within the last 150 days—first in the Legislative Council elections and now in the Bankipur by-election.'

He further accused Chaudhary of complete failure in governance, asserting, 'The law and order situation in the state has completely deteriorated.'

Yadav acknowledged the mandate from Bankipur, declaring, 'This mandate is against the BJP-led NDA and the Chief Minister.'

Prashant Kishor, founder of the Jan Suraj Party, secured victory in the Bankipur assembly seat, a constituency historically dominated by the BJP since 1995.

The by-election was necessitated by the resignation of BJP National President Nitin Nabin, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha in April. Kishor won his first election with 64,151 votes, defeating BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar Sinha by a margin of 19,324 votes. Sinha was a last-minute replacement after the initially announced candidate, Abhishek 'Bunty', withdrew due to 'personal reasons.'

In this by-election, RJD candidate Rekha Kumari received 14,273 votes, finishing in third place. Yadav reiterated, 'We accept the mandate of the Bankipur by-election. The people have voted against the BJP-led NDA and the Chief Minister.'

He emphasized the visible public anger towards the BJP, questioning, 'Has the Chief Minister accomplished any significant constructive work in the past 150 days?'

Additionally, Yadav raised concerns regarding the recent death of Bimal Kumar, the Executive Officer of the Dehri-Dalmianagar Municipal Council, alleging that the police are not conducting a proper investigation and that the Chief Minister and state government are protecting the local legislator involved. He stated, 'The family of the deceased officer wanted to meet the Chief Minister to demand a fair investigation, but he did not have time for them.'

Yadav insisted that the police should investigate the local legislator's involvement in the case, as he is allegedly linked to extortion. 'The government is providing protection to criminals, and the law and order situation in the state is completely broken,' he added.

Bimal Kumar's body was discovered on August 1 in Aurangabad district of Bihar. He was traveling from Dehri to Patna when the incident occurred on the service road of the Son River in the Barun area. Yadav mentioned, 'I have met with the family of Bimal Kumar. A case of extortion and murder should be filed against the legislator in this matter.'

He claimed that the officer fell victim to the alleged extortion of a local representative. 'Why is the Chief Minister silent on this issue? I demand security for the deceased officer's family and a government job for his wife.'