BJP wins trust vote in Bihar
The first BJP-led Government in Bihar on Friday won a vote of confidence in the State Assembly, as Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary moved the motion seeking a vote of confidence, which won over through a voice vote in the 243-strong House, where the ruling NDA enjoys a majority with 202 seats.
Choudhary became the first BJP leader to head a Government in the State, and soon after winning the trust motion gave assurance of speedy economic development, with investments worth Rs 5 lakh crore in one year. The House also passed another motion censuring the Opposition’s stance on the women’s reservation bill.
The debate on the motion of confidence saw acrimonious exchanges between the ruling side and the Opposition, which seemed resolute to make its voice heard, moving past the trauma of decimation it faced in the Assembly polls held last November.
Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav gave a brief speech, in which he touched upon various issues, including the raging debate on reservation for women in the legislatures, which has been revived since a bill seeking to link the quotas to delimitation fell in Parliament as it did not get a two-thirds majority.
However, Samrat Choudhary countered the allegation and reminded Yadav that his predecessor Nitish Kumar, “the most popular leader of Bihar who continues to guide our government,” had played a key role in helping the RJD leader’s father, Lalu Prasad, become the chief minister in the 1990s.
Choudhary, whom Yadav had sought to belittle by calling him “a product of Laluji’s school”, a reference to the BJP leader having begun his career with the RJD, also claimed, “I am a victim of your party’s high-handedness, while it was in power. Several members of my family, including myself, had been named in fake cases, forcing me to enter public life.”
“I had the opportunity to serve as a Deputy CM in charge of the Finance Department under Nitish Kumar. People may not be aware that we have attracted investments worth Rs 1.36 lakh crore in the past year. That figure will climb up to Rs 5 lakh crore in the next one year,” the CM said.
