PURNIA: Senior Bihar BJP leaders on Friday raked up Bangladeshi infiltration, cattle smuggling and sleeper cell among other issues in the Seemanchal region of the state. They were speaking at the ‘Jan Bhavna rally’ later addressed by Union home minister Amit Shah.
In the first rally in Bihar after CM Nitish Kumar snapped ties with BJP in August and joined hands with RJD, Congress and the Left, the state BJP leaders launched frontal attack on Nitish and RJD chief Lalu Prasad over dynasty politics and rise in crime. They alleged that the state was headed towards jungleraj (lawlessness).
Former Bihar deputy CM and BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sushil Kumar Modi (SuMo) said that Muslim population in the old Purnia district increased from 30% of the population in 1951 to 45% in 2011. “Against the national growth rate of 4.37% of Muslim population between 1951 and 2011, it has been 15.81%% in the old Purnia district (after the delimitation in 1956), 10% in Katihar (1961-2011) and 8% in Araria,” he said.
Another former Bihar deputy CM, Tarkishore Prasad, who is the BJP MLA from Katihar in the same region, said: “Infiltration, cattle smuggling and uncontrolled population have been the three main underlying causes for under development of Seemanchal region. I still remember when Bhartiya Yuva Janata Morcha had formed a human chain in protest against infiltration in this region. The PFI and other similar outfits are also causing instability in the region,” he said.
Pradeep Kumar Singh fom Araria, the lone Lok Sabha MP of BJP in the Seemanchal, demanded “a probe into Bangladeshi infiltrations and those coming through the porous Nepal border”.
Union minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai demanded from the Nitish Kumar government to extend local support to curb infiltration in Seemanchal. “Infiltration is the biggest problems of Seemanchal region. Though it has been reduced after Narrendra Modi-led NDA came to power at the Centre. Still, I would appeal to Bihar government to provide necessary support to reduce it further. We will not allow single infiltration in this region….You (Nitish) are becoming protector of PFI,” Nityanand said.
Union minister Giriraj Singh also claimed that “Bangladeshi infiltrators will be completely removed from Seemanchal.”
Former state mines minister Janak Ram raided the issue of multiple marriages and said, “Marriage for the fourth or fifth time is against the Constitution,” he said.
Former deputy CM Renu Devi said Bihar seems to have entered Jungleraaj part-3 with increasing number of rapes, murders and loots every day. “A nine-year-old girl was raped in Jandaha and police are not even lodging a complaint regarding the crime,” she alleged.
State BJP president Dr Sanjay Jaiswal also said an SHO was killed by an infiltrator in Kishanganj but no action had been taken. “Girls are being raped every day. When we questioned Nitish on such issues, he used to get annoyed. Now, he has joined an alliance, which does not bother about crime at all,” he said.
BJP Patna Sahib MLA Nand Kishor Yadav mocked the speculations about CM Nitish Kumar becoming the prime ministerial candidate. “Some people are dreaming of becoming PM. But there is no vacancy for PM as Narendra Modi is already there,” he said.
