Shah to arrive in Bihar tomorrow days after opposition parties meeting in Patna

Union home minister Amit Shah will arrive in Bihar on Thursday days after 32 leaders from 15 parties met in Patna last week and all but one of them vowed to jointly take on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and forge a common agenda ahead of the 2024 national elections.

Bihar BJP chief Samrat Choudhary said the visit is part of the party’s outreach on the completion of nine years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. He dismissed the gathering of non-BJP parties, saying they do not attach much importance to it, especially in Bihar as long as chief minister Nitish Kumar is their face. “We may have to think a bit only if there is a new face on the other side in Bihar. ...people do not look beyond a decisive and sensitive Modi as the Prime Minister, who has positioned India as a country heard on every global platform.”

He said over 100,000 people will gather to listen to Shah in Lakhisarai. Choudhary said the fragility of the non-BJP parties was evident before they could sit together in Patna. “...it [the opposition unity] would disintegrate due to their contradictions...it is a group solely working to protect its self-interest.”

He dismissed the BJP’s opponents as dynasts and corrupt. “...the kind of trust deficit they have, everyone knows why they are joining hands. It is sheer fear of getting caught.... the BJP is a democratic party. Today, some leader is there, tomorrow someone else will be there. ...for others, it is all in families for generations.”

BJP lawmaker Sushil Kumar Modi said Shah and BJP chief JP Nadda’s visit to the state was part of the BJP’s Bihar plan. He added they will address people and gather feedback. “It would certainly expose people such as Lalan Singh, who could become MP [member of Parliament] only because of the support of the BJP,” he said referring to the ruling Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) lawmaker from Munger. Lakhisarai is part of Munger Lok Sabha seat.

He said Singh could win in 2009 and 2019 due to the BJP’s support but now he has speaking against the party since JD(U) quit the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) last year. “Such people need to be exposed and they will get automatically exposed.”

He said Shah will understandably speak about the Modi government’s achievements in taking India forward and why the opposition parties are so jittery to save their skin. “If the opposition leaders are facing the music, it is because of their deeds, which the people are also aware of.”

Former Bihar assembly speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha said the people were eager to welcome Shah. He added Shah has been working tirelessly with Modi and that the opposition parties were upset with India’s rise.

“Shah will send a strong message. There will also be a message for JD(U) president Lalan Singh that his time is up and the people of Lakhisarai will teach him a lesson for playing into the hands of those who thrive on appeasement politics and corruption.”

Singh said Shah keeps visiting Bihar and anybody is free to go anywhere. “He is doing what he should, but the people of Bihar cannot fall for rhetoric. They are politically mature. They have seen who has developed Bihar and they acknowledge Nitish Kumar’s contribution.”

Union ministers Nityanand Rai and Giriraj Singh have been camping in Bihar for over a week holding public meetings and interacting with people to highlight the achievements of the Modi government.

In the 2019 national polls, NDA won 39 of the 40 seats in Bihar. The BJP got 17, JD (U) 16, and Lok Janshakti Party six.