PATNA: By ensuring victory of JD(U) candidates from both Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur seats in the keenly-watched assembly bypolls, the voters have once again reposed their faith in the development model of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, said JD(U).
While the opposition RJD raised issues like unemployment, price rise, corruption, failure to maintain law and order, alleged home delivery of liquor as well as the state government’s failure to provide employment opportunities to 19 lakh youths as promised during the 2020 assembly polls; the ruling JD(U) leaders sought votes mainly in the name of the development works executed by Nitish Kumar-led government in the last 16 years in Bihar.
"Our leader Nitish Kumar executed different kinds of development works across the state with the motto of "Development with Justice." People in both the constituencies voted in favour of the development works of Nitish Kumar. The people have once again reposed their faith in the development model of Vikas Purus Nitish Kumar,” JD(U) state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha told TOI, while reacting over the by-poll results here on Tuesday.
However, Nitish himself gave the credit of victory to the people of Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur which went to the by-election on October 30. “I congratulate the public of Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur for ensuring victory of JD(U) candidates - Aman Bhushan Hajari and Rajiv Kumar Singh, respectively. In democracy, the public is the master and the public has pronounced its verdict," Nitish said in a statement.
With this triumph, the total number of JD(U) MLAs in the 243-member assembly has once again reached 45. The party had won altogether 43 seats in the 2020 assembly polls. Later on, the lone BSP MLA Zama Khan and the lone LJP MLA Raj Kumar Singh joined the JD(U) on separate dates. Thus, the total number of JD(U) MLAs in the state assembly rose to 45 by April this year.
However, within a few months the party’s two sitting MLAs Shashi Bhushan Hajari (Kusheshwar Asthan) and Mewalal Choudhary (Tarapur) died of covid-19 infection, leading to by-election in both the constituencies.
In Kusheshwar Asthan, the JD(U) fielded Shashi Bhushan’s son Aman Bhushan while in Tarapur Rajiv Kumar Singh was made the party candidate as Mewalal’s son who lives in the US was not ready to contest the by-polls.
“The victory of NDA-supported JD(U) candidates from Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur is the triumph of the policies and programmes of CM Nitish Kumar. It shows the people still have faith in the policies of Nitish Kumar,” JD(U)’s former state president and Rajya Sabha member Bashishtha Narain Singh said on Tuesday.
“The by-poll results are also a lesson for those who believe in the politics of ‘Visarjan’ (immersion),” Singh said in an oblique reference to the controversial statement of the RJD chief Lalu Prasad who had said he (Lalu) would ensure ‘Visarjan’ of CM Nitish Kumar.
