File photo of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Nitish Kumar today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring back 'purane din' (old days) of the people. He attacked the Modi government which had blamed him for the rise in price of pulses in Bihar.
"I feel like laughing at Union ministers blaming me for skyrocketing prices of pulses. If it was so, the price of pulses should have been Rs 200 per kg only in Bihar... Why it is selling at Rs 200 per kg in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh?" Mr Kumar said in an election rally at Nalanda.
Union Agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh and Food minister Ramvilas Paswan today addressed a press conference and blamed Mr Kumar for hike in prices of pulses.
In a bid to present Centre's stand on the price rise, the two ministers blamed Mr Kumar for decline in production of pulses in Bihar in recent years and also the state government's failure to utilise "price stabilisation fund."
"Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Delhi and West Bengal which used the 'Price Stabilisation Fund', are selling pulses at Rs 120 to Rs 130 per kg through retail outlets," Mr Singh said.
Slamming Narendra Modi government for "skyrocketing" price of pulses, Mr Kumar asked the Prime Minister to "keep your 'achche din' (good days) with you and return people their 'purane din' (old days)."
Seeking to make escalating rate of pulses a poll issue in Bihar, Kumar said pulses called "poor man's meat" has vanished from plate of common man.
Mr Kumar, who has been declared as the face of 'grand alliance' in the Bihar poll, also raked up issue of 'Bihari' and 'Bahri' (outsider) against NDA, which is fighting the elections in the name of Modi and has not declared a chief ministerial candidate yet. Mr Kumar asked people to "bid goodbye to outsiders" as people have a better choice in him as a Bihari.