JDU leaders have a lack of knowledge on special status, said Chitranjan Gagan
JDU leaders have a lack of knowledge on special status, said Chitranjan Gagan
Patna June 13: The RJD leader and spokesperson Chitranjana Gagan said that the demand for granting special state status to Bihar has been raised since the time of Bihar’s partition in 2000.
Unfortunately, the JD (U) leaders do not know about it.
“In 2000, there was an RJD government in Bihar and NDA government at the centre in which Nitish Kumar was the cabinet minister. At the same time, Uttarakhand was given special state status after it was separated from Uttar Pradesh. On 25 April 2000, a unanimous resolution was passed by the Bihar Assembly and sent to the centre. On 3 February 2002, at the occasion of the foundation stone laying of the Digha-Sonpur rail-cum-road bridge, in a gathering at Gandhi Maidan, the then Chief Minister Rabri Devi publicly demanded the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to grant special state status to Bihar, which Vajpayee had termed as a fair demand and had also assured to grant special state status to Bihar,” Gagan said.
“Again, on April 2, 2002, a unanimous resolution was passed in the Bihar Assembly and sent to the Centre. On May 16, 2002, a notice given under Rule 193 was by an RJD MP late Dr Raghuvansh Prasad Singh in the Lok Sabha, which was supported by all parties. Despite this, why was Bihar not given the status of a special state and why was that file closed, only Nitish Kumar will give the right answer to this,” Gagan said.
“In the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself had promised from public platforms that if his government is formed at the Centre, Bihar will be given the status of a special state. Both times his government was formed and this time his government was formed with the support of JD (U). So, why is JD (U) running away from this demand now?” he asked.
RJD spokesperson said that if JDU spokespersons have raised questions on what Bihar got during the UPA-1 government, then they should remember that the achievements of Nitish Kumar’s 2005 government are the achievements of the UPA-1 government at the Centre. Lalu Prasad Yadav gave a profit of 90,000 crores to the loss-making railways, while for the first time in history, railway fares were earned and passenger facilities were increased in railways. Three railway factories (Madhaura, Bela and Madhepura) were opened in Bihar. Under PMGSY, funds were given for the construction of 36,000 km of roads. Under the Gadgil formula, 1822 MW of electricity was given per day. Urma coal block was allotted. The amount received by Bihar every year from the Centre was increased from one thousand crores to two thousand crores. 24000 crores were given under the 12th Five Year Plan. All the districts of Bihar were included in the BRGF scheme. Ample funds were provided for Food for Work, MNREGA, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, National Rural Health Mission, Rapid Rural Water Supply Scheme, Rajiv Gandhi Rural Electrification Scheme and Indira Awas Yojana. 90 percent central grant was given in centrally sponsored schemes. JD (U) should tell how much amount has been given to Bihar since the Modi government came to power at the centre.
“If JDU spokespersons have raised the question of caste census, then they should know that in 2000 there was an NDA government at the centre but census was not conducted. When the census was conducted in 2010, the caste census was also conducted along with the census on the demand of Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Sharad Yadav. When the final count was to come, Modi’s government was formed at the centre. Due to this, it was not released. The caste census was conducted in Bihar only on the initiative of Tejashwi Yadav. Nitish Kumar himself said this in front of the press when the all-party delegation came out after meeting the Prime Minister. The entire country knows what the Chief Minister said about the job promise,” he added.
EOM.