Latest news with #Dalits'
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Tejashwi Yadav claims ₹20k crore spent on PM Modi's rallies in Bihar
Patna, Jun 21 (PTI) RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Saturday continued with his "pickpocket" jibe, claiming that a staggering ₹ 20,000 crore has been spent on rallies addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Bihar so far. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav claimed that PM Modi had spent ₹ 20,000 crore of public money in rallies in Bihar(ANI) Also Read: Declined US President Trump's invite to Washington to come to Odisha: PM Modi The BJP also sharpened its counter-attack, with posters being put up across the state capital bearing the slogan "Mera baap chaara chor, mujhe vote do" (my father stole fodder meant for cattle, vote for me), belittling the leader of the opposition who leads the INDIA bloc in the upcoming assembly polls. The young leader, who had a day ago raised the hackles of the ruling NDA by alleging that exorbitant ticket fares of Vande Bharat made Modi look like a "pocketmaar" (pickpocket), used the expression again in a stinging social media post. Also Read: PM Modi's quote, 'kamal' removal: 5 changes made to Aamir Khan's Sitaare Zameen Par He alleged that rallies of Modi in Bihar, since 2014, have cost " ₹ 100 crore each" and there have been "200 such public meetings" so far. Also Read: In Bihar, PM Narendra Modi slams RJD over Lalu Yadav's feet near Ambedkar photo row: 'No respect for Dalits' "So the total amount splurged during the period, which has also seen five elections (three Lok Sabha and two Vidhan Sabha), is ₹ 20,000 such meetings have been organised by the government even though the objective has been, clearly, electoral," the former Bihar deputy CM claimed. Notably, Modi was in Siwan district on Friday, which was his fifth visit to the state this year, the second in less than a month, and said to be "51st" since taking over as the prime minister. Yadav, who seemed to be in no mood to give up his tirade, alleged, "What should we call a person who cleverly uses public money on his own pretends to be a man of integrity?... Of course, pocketmaar, not madadgaar (a helper of the people)." The BJP, which takes on the RJD in the assembly elections due in just a few months, retaliated with full force. A day after BJP's former state unit president and Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary had sought to berate Yadav by using the famous line from the blockbuster 'Deewaar' - Mera baap chor Hai (my father is a thief) - in an obvious dig at RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's corruption taint, the party engaged in a "poster war". In the posters, which the party has not officially owned, the colourful slogan is inscribed next to a caricature that shows the father-son duo riding a buffalo, an obvious reference to the fodder scam. The conviction in the fodder scam has left Prasad, a former chief minister and an ex-Union minister, disqualified from contesting the elections.
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Row over SP leader's comment on Wing Commander rages
The uproar over senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ram Gopal Yadav's statement highlighting the caste identity of Wing Commander Vyomika Singh failed to die down with political parties on Friday (May 16, 2025) describing the comment as shameful and condemnable. They added that the SP is a party that 'tortured Dalits' during its regime, and it is not refraining from looking at Dalits as inferior even in this era. Also Read | M.P. Deputy CM's 'Forces bowing down to Modi' remarks spark row; Congress demands dismissal 'Shri Ram Gopal Yadav, who became a professor by continuously torturing Dalits, is not refraining from looking down upon Dalits even at this age. The real face of the SP, which is anti-Dalit, supporting elements working against India, appeasing Muslim community and narrow-minded is again in front of all of us,' said Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) further hit out at the SP for spreading poison in the society and doing disservice to the nation. 'People who spread poison in the name of caste for political gains are doing a great disservice to the Indian Army and nation by vitiating the society with such perverse thought, such people only display their narrow vision which is against the spirit of Indian society which lives and thrives with different castes, languages, religions and worldviews. Indian society through history has lived with coherence. These SP leaders making such a statement symbolises them playing in the hands of elements working on a grand narrative of breaking India into pieces,' said Pushkar Mishra, a senior BJP functionary based in U.P. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati termed the statement shameful. 'The entire country is united and proud of the valour of Operation Sindoor of the Indian Army against the terrorists in Pakistan. In such a situation, it is extremely unfair to judge/divide the army on the basis of religion and caste. The mistake that the BJP minister made in this regard, the same senior SP leader has also made, which is shameful and condemnable,' wrote Ms. Mayawati on X. Mr. Yadav, who is a Rajya Sabha member, had on May 15 sparked a controversy when he said Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, a part of the military's news briefings during Operation Sindoor, was being targeted by a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Minister as she is a Muslim, but Wing Commander Vyomika Singh was spared thinking she was Rajput. Touching upon the caste identity of Ms. Singh, the SP leader said all three — Ms. Qureshi, the Wing Commander and Air Marshal A.K. Bharti hail from the so-called PDA (Pichda, Dalit and Alpasankhyak) meaning Backward, Dalit and Minority social segments.
The Hindu
03-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Tejashwi Yadav attempts to dent EBC vote through Atipichda Jagao rally in Bihar
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav on Saturday (May 3, 2025) asked people belonging to the extremely backward classes (EBCs), considered core voters of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal (United), to change their leadership choices in the upcoming Bihar Assembly election. Mr. Yadav asserted that Bihar no longer needed a khatara gaadi (outdated vehicle) as the time has come to bring in a new vehicle. He was speaking during the 'Atipichda Jagao – Tejashwi Sarkar Banao (Awaken the EBCs and bring Tejaswi's government)' rally organised by the RJD's EBC cell at Patna's Miller High School Ground. Key vote bank Large numbers of people from EBC groups turned up to attend the rally and continuously shouted slogans in support of Mr. Yadav, calling him the next Chief Minister of Bihar. According to Bihar's caste-based survey, EBCs form the largest block of the population, with a vote bank of more than 36% of the electorate. This chunk is considered a key reason Mr. Kumar has remained in power in Bihar for the past 20 years. Mr. Yadav alleged that the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government was doing anti-constitutional work against the interests of Dalits, backward and extremely backward classes. The rally was presided over by the RJD's EBC State president Arvind Kumar Sahani. Mr. Yadav's elder brother Tej Pratap Yadav and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Yadav were also present. 'Atrocities against EBCs, Dalits' The Leader of Opposition Mr. Yadav accused Mr. Kumar of promoting unemployment and migration along with a continuous rise in atrocities against backward classes. He claimed that they are being put behind bars in false cases. 'After prohibition, the people of the backward and Dalit society are being harassed and imprisoned. BJP has hijacked Nitish ji and he himself gives proof of being hijacked by BJP in public meetings, saying that now he will not go here and there,' Mr. Yadav said. 'The JD(U) is being run by the same people who are engaged in strengthening the politics of BJP. No leader of the backward class has got a good Ministry in Bihar. People sitting in the government, tell us how many DMs and SPs are from the backward class? Nitish ji is tired and the government is running for show, with the help of retired officials,' Mr. Yadav said. 'Give RJD a chance' Praising the work done by his father and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav for the backward classes, Mr. Yadav said his parents had increased the reservation for the backward castes from 18% to 25% in educational institutions and government jobs. He added that under the Mahagathbandhan government, the reservation was increased from 50% to 65% and a proposal was sent from the Bihar Cabinet to the Central government to include the State in the 9th Schedule of the Constitution, which never happened. Mr. Yadav claimed that corruption has increased under NDA rule, allegeing that no work is done without giving bribes. 'Give me one chance, form the new government and I guarantee you job and security. Tejashwi Yadav will give you everything and I will not compromise with law and order. Tejashwi will send to jail all those people who are engaged in corruption,' Mr. Yadav appealed.
