Nitish Kumar accused of instigation
Old partners of the NDA Government in Bihar came to blows on Thursday in the State legislative Council and accused each other for the ugly incident.
The BJP accused JD(U) leader, Nitish Kumar for instigating his party leaders to attack them which eventually prompted Kumar to say that he was deeply hurt and would not attend the ongoing session of the Council “until an inquiry report absolve him from the accusation.”
The unprecedented incident happened at Question Hour when JD(U) MlA, Sanjay Singh allegedly instigated by party leader Nitish Kumar, hurled uncalled for words against leader of Opposition in the Council, Sushil Kumar Modi.
Modi was putting question on the Government on reduction of scholarship amount from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 15,000 for students belonging to extremely backward castes and communities.
“At the instigation of Kumar, his party colleague, Singh uttered some uncalled words against me and while protesting his undemocratic behaviour, we rushed into the Well of the House…It was unprecedented”, said senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi.
Amid raging protest and din, the Council Chairman Awadhesh Narayan Singh later, adjourned the House for 10 minutes but as soon as he left the House a clash broke out between the members of two rival parties.
“Once again Singh rose up to his chair, and commented that Modi suffers from some serious ailment of always blubbering something and other words which I cannot speak before the camera”, said State BJP chief Mangal Pandey.
The BJP legislators, including Mangal Pandey, Rajnish Kumar and others rushed towards Singh to protest but, some JD(U) members like Ranbir Nandan, Neeraj Kumar and others opposed their move.
Meanwhile, some other members from both the sides got involved in the clash while, accusing each other for their undemocratic behavior and attitude in side the House.
The pandemonium which threatened to break out in a violent clash, continued for ten minutes in presence of senior party leaders Nitish Kumar and Sushil Modi from both the parties.
later, the scuffling lawmakers were to be physically separated with the help of House marshals and by intervention of senior leaders from both the parties.
later, the BJP leader Sushil Modi charged Kumar for instigating his party member Sanjay Singh to create such pandemonium in the House to save his Government from embarrassment.
He also said that if the situation was not brought under control in time, he would have been attacked by the JD(U) leaders.
“It was Nitish Kumar who instigated Singh to create trouble. The JD(U) leaders wanted to attack me which was shameful and unfortunate”, said Modi while adding that though, once he was attacked in the State Assembly by members of RJD during lalu’s regime but it has never ever happened in the Council.
State BJP president, Mangal Pandey too accused Nitish Kumar for instigation and said that the JD(U) leaders lobbed unparliamentarily words and threatening moves towards them.
“Anything could have happened if it was not stopped at that time…what the JD(U) leaders did inside the House was unprecedented,” he said further.
Meanwhile, the JD(U) leader and former Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who was seen sitting quietly at his place when the members of both parties were involved in fracas, said that he was deeply hurt over such an unfortunate accusation against him.
“I'm deeply hurt over charges of instigation made against me and I think I should not attend the on going session of the House until the inquiry committee absolves me from the charges”, said Kumar in the House.
He also said that it has never happened in his 30 years of parliamentary history that such an allegation has been labeled against me.
Kumar also demanded an inquiry into the charges made against him by the BJP leaders.
The JD(U) member who reportedly had triggered the clash, Sanjay Singh told media persons that it was not he but, the BJP members who had moved threateningly towards him and used uncalled for words against him.
“The BJP members have got this habit of lingering their question for several minutes which eventually barred other members from asking their questions of general public interest”, he said.
He also said that when he opposed Modi within the parliamentary confines of the House the BJP leaders not only trooped into well but also moved towards me threatingly.
“Some of my party colleagues rushed to save me and we opposed them…Am I a noviceIJ”, said Sanjay who earlier, was with lJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan but later changed his political loyalty to JD(U) and became party MlC.
later, the Council Chairman called an all-party meeting to discuss the issue.
Meanwhile, the RJD leader and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, however, said that members from both the parties have done wrong and whatever has happened was uncalled for.
“Jo kuch bhi hua hai galat hai…dono taraf se galati hui hai”, said Rabri Devi who is also a party members of State Council.
But, her husband and party chief lalu Prasad who reached Patna on Thursday reportedly for seat negotiation with Kumar, accused the BJP for creating all this for cheap publicity.
“I know Sushil Modi well...he will go to any extent to grab the limelight and publicity. How does Kumar figures into all thisIJ”, said lalu Prasad whose new found bonhomie with Nitish Kumar after nearly two decades of rivalry has been creating ripples in political circle of Bihar.
lalu Prasad also made comments of the State BJP chief Mangal Pandey saying “yeh Mangal Pandey amangal pandey hai..kaun leader hain yeh, kab se hai..kahan se aaya haiIJ”, mocked lalu Prasad.