Ahmedabad, Apr 13 (PTI) Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Sunday targeted RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, claiming that the people of Bihar have made up their mind to root out nepotism in the upcoming assembly polls in the eastern state.

He said that the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s ‘MY-BAAP’ – Muslim-Yadav and Bahujan-Agdaa (forwards)-Aadhi Abaadi (women)-Pichda – formula also won’t work in the polls.

He was in Ahmedabad to attend the ‘Sneh Milan Samaroh’ organised by the Gujarat BJP to mark the extended Bihar foundation day celebration.

Singh said that when RJD supremo and Tejashwi Yadav’s father Lalu Yadav was the chief minister, he worked to “defame” Bihar and only cause misery to the people.

Tejashwi Yadav has been targeting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his government over “widespread corruption, bribery and rising crimes, unemployment, inflation, migration and poverty” in Bihar.

“What (Tejashwi Yadav) has said about Nitish Kumar’s government is ‘thetharology’ (irrational talk). The era of Charwaha Vidyalaya (schools for cattle grazers) started by Lalu Yadav has ended.

“Under Nitish Kumar’s rule, Bihar got IIT, NIT, NIFT, AIIMS, and medical colleges in every district. If this is misgovernance, so be it,” Singh said, addressing mediapersons.

BJP and Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), or JDU, are partners in the NDA government in Bihar, where elections to the 243-member assembly are due this year.

The Union Textiles Minister said that the NDA government has lifted 50 lakh families out of poverty in Bihar. People have been provided with houses, toilets, 5-kg monthly foodgrains, 24-hour electricity and Rs 5-lakh health insurance coverage, he said.

“If this is the misery of the poor, then it is acceptable to us. Let them (opposition) have the sweet dreams of Mungeri Lal (referring to a popular Doordarshan show of yesteryear). Biharis have resolved to remove nepotism from its roots. In the elections, MY-BAAP – both will end,” he said.

Nitish Kumar will be the CM’s face for the NDA in the elections, he added.

Singh, who represents the Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency in Bihar, said that the Waqf law brought by the Narendra Modi government will benefit poor Muslims.

“Muslim religious leaders have usurped the (Waqf) land by changing the names in their favour. The Waqf (Amendment) Act has been brought out for the benefit of the poor. Not even a brick from a mosque will be removed. Neither will the government interfere in any madrasa, nor will anyone’s land be seized,” he said.

Singh said that the “tukde tukde gang” was trying to defame Modi and Nitish Kumar by spreading rumours over the Waqf Act.

He said that around 15-20 lakh Bihari migrants have made Gujarat their home. People of Bihar who migrated to Gujarat in the 1990s have also contributed to the development of the western state, said the minister.

“Gujarat is a land full of affection for people from other states. The people of Bihar in Gujarat reflect the soul of India. The land of Bihar has been full of traditions and culture. There have been many colours in it. … whether it is in the name of Vikramshila or Nalanda,” he said.

Singh said Bihar has produced Aryabhatta, Mahavira, Buddha and Guru Nanak. Leaders like Jagjivan Ram and Ram Vilas Paswan who embodied social harmony were also born there, and today the state is transforming, he said.

“I covered the 130-km distance from Begusarai to Patna within 1.5 hours instead of the 5 hours taken two decades back. PM Modi and Nitish Kumar have joined hands…in a way, both of them have made Bihar new,” he said.

Of the more than 4 crore houses constructed under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, 50 lakh are in Bihar, he said.

“Elections will be held in Bihar, and we have also given the slogan ‘225 (seats) in 2025’. Today’s transformed Bihar has a network of roads. Today, states like Bihar are also reaching new heights,” he said.

He said that when thousands of workers from Bihar went back to their home state during the COVID-19 pandemic, they created textile hubs in districts like Champaran, Begusarai and Muzaffarpur. PTI KA PD NR