"What Now, Nitish Kumarji": Prashant Kishor After Travel Pass For BJP MLA

It would appear the Bihar government does not practice what it preaches.

On April 15, two days after the Chief Secretary wrote to the Union Home Ministry and urged "strict enforcement of the lockdown", Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's government issued movement passes to BJP MLA Anil Singh for the return of his son.

Mr Singh's son was one of thousands of students left stranded in Rajasthan's Kota after a nationwide lockdown to break the chain of transmission of the novel coronavirus.

On Friday, after the Uttar Pradesh government sent 300 buses to bring back the students, Nitish Kumar, a key BJP ally, hit out at the "injustice" of move and claimed it violated the "principle of the lockdown".

"The way special buses are being sent to ferry students from Kota, it is injustice with the principle of the lockdown," Mr Kumar told NDTV, adding that it was critical to maintain social distancing at this time and any gathering could spread the COVID-19 virus further.

Mr Kumar's comment and the subsequent issue of a movement pass for a BJP MLA's son, drew sharp criticism from poll strategist Prashant Kishor.

"Appeal to help children of Bihar trapped in Kota. Nitish Kumar had rejected... now his government has given special permission to a BJP MLA to bring his son from Kota. Nitishji, what does your dignity say now?" Mr Kishor, who was expelled from Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) in January, tweeted today.

Mr Kumar was also criticised by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, who tweeted: "Bihar CM was telling UP CM that he should not have allowed buses to bring back the trapped students in Kota. On the other hand, they were allowing their MLA to bring back their son in a confidential manner. In Bihar, many such VIPs and officers were issued passes. Trapped poor".

Interestingly, the movement pass to the BJP MLA was also issued days after a group of 300 students, armed with passes issued by the Kota administration, were ferried to Patna in taxis.

This too had prompted the Bihar government to write to the Home Ministry.

"This will open up a Pandora's box. If you allow students, on what grounds can you stop migrant labourers who are also stuck," the letter said, asking that special permits granted by the Rajasthan government be stopped.

The entire issue has snowballed into a major political row, particularly since Mr Kumar has been a vocal critic of states arranging for the return of residents stuck in other parts of the country due to the lockdown.

Mr Kumar's government has also pointed out that while some states appear eager to facilitate the return of students, they are less prompt when faced with migrant workers stranded far from home.

The Chief Minister has, however, been critical of bringing them back as well, arguing "it is better to organise camps locally, instead of trying to send people back home. The state government will reimburse the costs of these camps organised by anyone".

The nationwide lockdown ordered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month (and extended to May 3 last week) has been credited with drastically reducing the number of coronavirus cases in the country; the centre has claimed up to 8.2 lakh could have been infected without the lockdown.

India has so far reported over 15,000 COVID-19 cases and 507 deaths. Rajasthan is among the worst-affected states (1,351 cases and 11 deaths) while Bihar has, so far, fared significantly better (86 cases and two deaths).