Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, leader of opposition in the state assembly, slammed Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar for playing the Dalit card by offering jobs to next of kin of Scheduled Castes and Tribes killed in the state, adding that the move will further encourage their killings. The opposition leader further asked why the same provision was not being extended to the OBCs and to those in the general category, calling it an “election gimmick”.
“Chief minister Nitish Kumar’s priority should be that no person from scheduled caste/ scheduled tribe is killed. But by promising jobs to next of kin from the SC/ST community, the killing of the SC/ST people is being encouraged. I ask where the chief minister was when there was a move to dilute the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. It was only after protests across the country, the Act was kept intact,” he said, at a press conference on Saturday at the state RJD office.
On Friday, the CM Kumar had instructed the chief secretary to frame rules for providing jobs to next of kin of persons from the SC/ST community killed in the state and also directed officials to dispose of all pending cases registered under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribe Act within a time frame.
Tejashwi also accused the CM of failing to create employment, check migration and reduce poverty in the last 15 years of his stint in power.
“Bihar’s rate of unemployment and migration is one of the highest in the country. Now , the CM is talking of hiking the salary of contractual teachers and creating more employment. This is all election gimmicks,” he said.
Maintaining that unemployment was the biggest problem in Bihar, the Yadav scion said that his party has come out with a dedicated portal and toll free number for preparing a database of unemployed youths in Bihar and will provide jobs to them if the party forms government in the state.
While the portal is www.berozgarihatao.co.in” the toll free number is 9334302020, he said.
Meanwhile, HAM(S) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi, who is back with the NDA, slammed Tejashwi for raising questions about the announcement made by the CM over jobs. “There is already a provision in the SC/ST( Prevention of Atrocities) Act for providing jobs to kin of those killed from the weaker sections. Those opposing it should read the act carefully,” Manjhi said in a tweet post.
Ruling JD(U), however, said that Tejashwi Yadav has no moral right to talk on the issues of migration and unemployment and he should have a glimpse of the track record during his parents regime on the twin issues.
