Arrest Me If Am Behind Bridge Collapses: Tejashwi Yadav Dares JDU

Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Friday accused Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the BJP of rampant corruption in the state for the record-breaking collapse of 10 bridges in the state in 15 days and the paper leak issue.

He further challenged JD(U) which has been ruling the state of Bihar for the past 17 years to release details of the officials involved in sanctioning and laying the foundation stone of bridges that have collapsed to expose the corrupt.

Speaking at RJD's foundation day event, the RJD leader said that the people of JDU are blaming him for every bridge collapse and dared the Nitish Kumar government to arrest him if he is behind all the mess.

"People say there is a double-engine government in Bihar. In the past 20 days, more than a dozen bridges have collapsed in the state. A number of train accidents have happened. Crimes are at their peak in Bihar. There was an incident of paper leak also. But, no one from the government is ready to speak on these issues. When they are asked, they say Tejashwi has done all this. Hum hi paper leak karwa rahe hain...hum hi pull girwa rahe hain...toh giraftar karlo humein," the RJD leader said.

He further challenged Nitish Kumar and the BJP to release details, including about who sanctioned and laid the foundation stone for the bridges, which have now collapsed.

"For the last 17 years, the Rural Development Department has been with JD(U). I challenge the CM or BJP leaders to release details, including about who sanctioned and laid the foundation stone of bridges that have now collapsed. This way, it will become clear who is corrupt," he added.

RJD is celebrating 28 years of its foundation today. The RJD came into existence on July 5, 1997.

Over the past 15 days, the state has seen the collapse of 10 bridges, raising concerns about infrastructure safety and maintenance. A bridge collapsed in Bihar's Saran district on Thursday, marking the 10th such incident in the state in just over a fortnight.

Five bridges in Araria, Siwan, East Champaran, Kishanganj, and Madhubani districts collapsed across the state in June last month.

On June 22, a bridge over the Gandak River in Siwan, approximately 40-45 years old, also fell. On June 23, a bridge under construction in East Champaran, costing around Rs 1.5 crore, collapsed, with locals blaming the use of substandard materials.

On June 18, a newly constructed bridge over the Bakra River in Pararia village of Bihar's Araria district collapsed.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)