On the final day of campaigning for the first phase of the Bihar Assembly elections, Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed a large public rally in Darbhanga's Jale. During his speech, Shah launched a sharp attack on the Opposition and Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi. Shah said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had visited Bihar two and a half months ago and took out the "Save Infiltrators Yatra". He alleged that Lalu Yadav and Rahul Gandhi "want to save infiltrators". Shah stressed that the BJP will identify and remove infiltrators from the country one by one. He also made several promises to the voters ahead of polling. "Bihar has already seen 15 years of jungle raj under Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi. The same model is now being pushed again. The NDA's priority is to stop the return of jungle raj and work towards making Darbhanga a developed district. Your role is to press the lotus button and strengthen this vision," Shah said.
Shah highlights Modi govt's welfare push
The Home Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured free treatment worth up to Rs 5 lakh for 3.60 crore people in Bihar under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. He added that PM Modi recently inaugurated Bihar's second IT Park in Darbhanga, which he said will bring new jobs and employment opportunities for youth in Mithila. Shah also noted that Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar have deposited Rs 10,000 into the bank accounts of 1.41 crore Jeevika Didi beneficiaries. He alleged that Lalu Yadav's party wants this money to be taken back. He told the Jeevika beneficiaries that neither Lalu nor his next three generations can take the money back. Shah said that if NDA forms the government again, Rs 2 lakh will be deposited into Jeevika accounts in the next five years.
Shah targets Opposition on alleged scams
Amit Shah also listed multiple scams and alleged corruption under previous governments. He accused Lalu Yadav of involvement in fodder scam, land for job scam, hotel sale scam, bitumen scam, flood relief scam, recruitment scam and AB Export scam. Shah said the Congress government too was involved in corruption worth Rs 12 lakh crore. Shah said that despite Modi governing for 11 years and Nitish Kumar for 20 years, no corruption allegations have been proven against them.
Bihar Assembly Elections 2025
Earlier this month, the Election Commission announced the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections. The 243 Assembly seats will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with the counting of votes scheduled to take place on November 14. The NDA led by the BJP and JD(U) will be up against the I.N.D.I.A bloc, led by Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD, the Congress, the CPI (ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, the CPI, the CPM, and Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP). The new entrant, Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj, has also fielded candidates on all 243 seats of the state.
