Top News

Patna: With the beginning of Chhath, the great festival of folk faith in Bihar, political rhetoric has also reached its peak. While on one hand there is an atmosphere of cleaning of ghats and preparations for fasting in various parts of the state, on the other hand former Chief Minister and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav has made a sharp attack on the Central Government and the Railway Ministry. Lalu Yadav, while sharing a post from his official social media account, directly targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the central government. He said that the announcement of “12,000 special trains” claimed by the government has proved to be completely misleading and false.

Lalu Yadav's allegation on Railways

Lalu Prasad Yadav wrote that the Prime Minister had falsely campaigned that out of the total 13,198 trains in the country, 12,000 trains would be run for Bihar on the occasion of Chhath festival, but the reality is the opposite. He tauntedly said, "The uncrowned king of lies and the leader of jumlas again lied. The NDA government of 20 years could not provide the facilities of respectable travel to Biharis even on Chhath."

The former Railway Minister said that lakhs of migrant laborers working outside Bihar are facing huge difficulties to return to their homes. Crowding at railway stations, shortage of tickets and late trains have made the situation more serious.

Bihar residents traveling in inhuman conditions

Lalu Yadav said in his statement that even on a holy festival like Chhath, the people of Bihar have to travel in inhuman conditions. He wrote, "The double engine government could not even guarantee convenient travel to the people of Bihar. Overcrowding, overloaded trains and irregular operations have created a crisis for the migrants."

He alleged that during the NDA government, no attention was paid to employment generation in Bihar, due to which even today crores of people are forced to migrate to other states in search of employment.

Twenty years of government, but not a single big industry

Lalu Yadav further said that despite the NDA government in Bihar for twenty years, not a single big industry was established in the state. He said, "The government is busy only in statements and advertisements, no concrete development initiative has been taken at the grassroots level. If industries had been set up in Bihar, today the migrant laborers would have got employment in their own state and on occasions like Chhath, they would not have had to struggle for rail tickets to return home."

Railway's claim and opposition's reaction

It is noteworthy that Indian Railways had recently announced that more than 12,000 special trains will be operated for the convenience of passengers during festive seasons like Dussehra, Diwali and Chhath. Railways said that this will reduce pressure in trains and migrants will be able to reach their homes easily. However, opposition parties claim that the situation at the ground level is just the opposite. RJD and Congress leaders have alleged that the railways' announcement was just a "political propaganda" and passengers returning to Bihar are facing inconvenience.

Politics of Chhath in elections

This statement has come at a time when preparations for Bihar Assembly elections 2025 are in their decisive phase. The first phase of voting is to be held on November 6 and the second phase of voting is to be held on November 11. In such a situation, this statement of Lalu Yadav is being considered important not only from social but also from political point of view. Analysts say that Chhath is a festival associated with the socio-cultural identity of Bihar, and the rhetoric on it directly affects the public sentiments. Lalu Yadav has tried to give a clear message by criticizing the Central Government on the occasion of Chhath that the BJP is "cut off" from the sensitivities of the people of Bihar.