"Ask Your Father": Nitish Kumar's Latest Outburst At Tejashwi Yadav

Patna: The Bihar election is rapidly turning - if it hasn't already - into a free-for-all and no-holds-barred slugfest, with the latest personal attack delivered by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar - a veteran politician known for dignified speeches - at a rally in Begusarai district on Saturday afternoon.

In a scathing speech that referred (the reference was clear, if indirect) to the RJD's Tejashwi Yadav - the opposition alliance's chief ministerial candidate and his principal challenger - Nitish Kumar said "ask your father or mother if they (Mr Yadav's parents) made any schools or colleges when they had the chance... or kept on making ill-gotten profits".

"Other people got an opportunity to govern. What did they do? Was one school or college built? If you want to study today, ask your father or mother? Is there a school? Was a college built all this time?" Nitish Kumar asked people gathered at a meeting in Teghra constituency.

The "father or mother" reference was to Mr Yadav's parents - former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is currently in jail for a corruption scam - and Rabri Devi - a two-time Chief Minister whom Nitish Kumar seemed to dismiss as a puppet installed by Lalu Yadav after he was jailed.

"... governed, made ill-gotten money and went to jail... sat his wife down on the chair. This is what has been happening in Bihar. But today, in my government, if there is anyone who does anything wrong... any man who breaks the law... he will go straight inside (to jail)," Mr Kumar declared.

Mr Kumar had earlier said that if his government is voted back to power it would give girls passing their intermediate exams a sum of ₹ 25,000. Girls passing their graduate exams would get ₹ 50,000. His government is currently giving sums of ₹ 10,000 and ₹ 25,000 respectively.

(inputs from agencies)