Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) president and former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Monday questioned the use of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s photographs on vaccination certificates and said his photographs “should also put on death certificates of COVID-19 victims”.
The HAM(S) is an ally of the ruling National Democratic Alliance in the State.
“If so much fond of putting photographs on vaccine certificates, then photographs should also be there on death certificates due to corona. This will be more just,” tweeted Mr. Manjhi on Monday which was shared to mediapersons on social media by party spokesperson Danish Rizwan.
Mr. Rizwan too slammed PM’s photograph on vaccine certificates. “If someone wants to take credit, then he should also be ready to face abuse for deaths as well. Why should others get the abuse?” asked Mr. Rizwan in his video tweet.
Mr. Manjhi took the second dose of vaccine at his village Mahakar in Gaya district on May 23. Soon after the jab, Mr. Manjhi tweeted: “I got the vaccine certificate after my second dose of Covaxin in which there is photograph of the Prime Minister. In our country, the constitutional head is the President, so the President’s photograph should be there on the certificates. Even if photographs are to be put, then there should be photographs of the President, PM and local CM too.”
Leaders embarrassed
The HAM(S) is part of the ruling alliance in Bihar comprising the BJP, JD(U) and the Vikassheel Insaan Party.
His tweet, however, caused major embarrassment to the NDA leaders in the State. BJP’s State spokesperson Prem Ranjan Patel said: “Anyone who has objections over Prime Minister’s photograph on vaccination certificates should realise that it was because of PM Modi’s leadership that COVID-19 vaccines were made in such a short span of time and his photograph has instilled confidence among people to take the jab.”
Mr. Rizwan countered: “If PM’s photograph gives confidence, then people should know that not even one per cent of Dalits in our country has taken the jab, so since our President is a Dalit, his photographs on the certificates will instil more confidence in them for inoculation.”
Earlier, the Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Congress and Left parties too had questioned the PM’s photograph on vaccine certificates.
Mr. Manjhi is said to be not comfortable in the ruling NDA in the State these days due to the “big brother” attitude of the BJP leadership. “Mr. Manjhi is also a hard bargainer and through his attacks on PM, he must have something in mind to bargain,” a State BJP leader told The Hindu requesting anonymity. “We all know how he does politics and switches his political loyalty for power,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Bihar government extended lockdown in the State from May 26 to June 1.
