File photo: BJP president Amit Shah
Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah today attacked Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, accusing him of backstabbing the NDA by snapping ties and said it was in line with his habit of "deceit" to grab power.
"Nitish Kumar betrayed George Fernandes, who gave him (Kumar) a national identity, and more recently, Jitan Ram Manjhi. Where is George Fernandes today? He has been forced to spend 'gumnaami ki zindagi' (a life of obscurity)?" he said.
Mr Shah said the saffron party had given a leadership role to Mr Kumar in the NDA and assisted him throughout "even at the cost of insult to the BJP workers" to prevent return of 'jungle raj' in Bihar.
"But, in tune with his behaviour he stabbed BJP in the back and joined hands with Lalu Prasad for the sake of power," he said. He told BJP workers to spread the truth among voters.
Amit Shah also targeted Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Prasad for trying to create a controversy over reservations for backward castes and dalits and asserted BJP was not against quotas for them.
"Lalu Prasad is nowadays talking about reservation for backwards and dalits and accusing the BJP of intending to end reservation which is not true. BJP has been in favour of reservation for backwards and dalits since the promulgation of Constitution and is not in favour of any review," he said.
The BJP chief accused Prasad of harping on the issue to "divert the attention of voters from the issue of jungle raj."
Addressing a BJP workers' conference at Begusarai, about 100 km from the state capital, the BJP chief said the Modi government attached great importance to national security, which will never be compromised.
The BJP president mocked Lalu Prasad's claims of being a Socialist, saying the RJD leader's entire politics nowadays was focused on promoting the interest of his family.
"While Prime Minister Narendra Modi will start his campaign for Bihar election from Banka on October 2, (Lalu) Prasad started his campaign from Raghopur (last Sunday) from where his son (Tejaswi Yadav) is contesting and which will see voting in the third phase," Mr Shah pointed out.
Defending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign trips, the BJP chief said, "Earlier nobody took notice of visit of 'Mauni Baba' (Manmohan Singh) to foreign land, but today people in large numbers welcome Narendra Modi."
He promised if the NDA was voted to power in the state, its government would ensure 24-hour electricity and huge investment in Bihar so youth do not have to go to other in search of livelihood.
BJP workers from 11 districts participated in the conference which was also attended by Union Minister Ananth Kumar, who is also in-charge of party's Bihar affairs.