Bihar MPs accused Piyush Goyal of demeaning their state
Union Minister Piyush Goyal today withdrew a controversial comment on Bihar that has provoked protests and condemnation in parliament by opposition MPs and demands for his apology.
The minister had made the comment on Tuesday, when RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) member Manoj Jha was speaking in Rajya Sabha on inflation and the state of the economy.
As Mr Jha made critical remarks about soaring prices, Piyush Goyal, the leader of the house, said: "Inka bas chale to desh ko Bihar bana dein (if he had his way, he would turn the entire country into Bihar)".
Mr Jha protested immediately. "Sir, this is an insult to Bihar. Piyush ji, with folded hands I urge you, say whatever you want to about me, but please don't make comments on Bihar," he said.
Bihar MPs accused Mr Goyal of demeaning their state by using it as a pejorative term.
This morning, Mr Goyal put out a clarification but stopped short of an apology. "Let me clarify that I had absolutely no intention of insulting either Bihar or people of Bihar. If it has hurt anyone's sentiment, I immediately withdraw that statement," the minister said in Rajya Sabha.
But MPs said it was not enough. "Piyush Goyal will have to offer a public apology for his remarks. Mere withdrawing the statement is not enough. He has insulted the people of Bihar," Mr Jha told NDTV.
If the minister did not apologise, he said, it would prove that Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoned such views.
RJD MPs and other members from Bihar protested near the Gandhi statue at parliament and raised slogans against the minister. "Piyush Goyal, apologise. We will not tolerate the insult of Bihar," MPs shouted.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav shared the clip of the exchange between his party MP and Mr Goyal yesterday in a post slamming the minister. "Look at the insult of Bihar and Biharis by a mindless and arrogant (vivekheen aur ahankari) Union Minister. Projects worth Rs 2.5 lakh crore were taken away from his home state Maharashtra by Gujarat and he could not utter a word. This shows his standing," Tejashwi Yadav said on Twitter.
Mr Jha wrote to Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Rajya Sabha chairman, urging him to delete the comment that, he said, was uncalled for and smacked of "elitism".
In the letter, Mr Jha said Mr Goyal had shown insensitivity towards Bihar and complained that the people of Bihar were "always treated like second class citizens". "I request you to expunge his statement and take necessary steps so that no other state in the country is subjected to such treatment by the Union Government," Mr Jha wrote.