NEW DELHI: In his victory speech on Friday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed sharp taunts at the rival Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), including appropriating the term “M-Y” — traditionally used to refer to the RJD’s Muslim and Yadav vote base — and rebranding it as “Mahila (women) and youth”.
“This (Mahila and Youth) is the new “M-Y” formula in Bihar,” PM Modi said, as the BJP headquarters here echoed with party workers’ ecstatic chants of “phir ek baar, NDA sarkar” and “Modi, Modi”.
The jab came hours after the BJP and its ally, the JD(U) of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, recorded a sweeping win over the Mahagathbandhan, the alliance led by the RJD and Congress, in the Bihar Assembly polls.
During his speech, the PM invoked “Chhathi Maiya”, said voters had “banished” the “corrupt” RJD-Congress alliance, and repeatedly brought up the “jungle raj” label.
“When I talked about jungle raj (while on the campaign trail) … the RJD did not oppose it but the Congress did. Today I say again, the corrupt government will not return. It will not return,” the Prime Minister said, reprising remarks he made last week before the second phase of voting.
At that time he had said, “Jungle raj means katta, krurta (cruelty), katuta (social resentment)…”
In his blistering speech, he also made a major prediction about the Congress’ political future and warned its allies — a reference to the Trinamool Congress in Bengal and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu, both of which vote next year. “Congress has no positive vision for the country,” he said.
Continuing his attack, PM Modi called the Congress a “parasite party” that harms its allies during elections. He warned that its partners should think twice before joining hands with it.
“Even the Congress allies are beginning to understand that the Congress is drowning everyone in its negative politics. That is why, during the Bihar elections, I said that the ‘naamdar’ of the Congress is practising to drown himself and others in the Bihar elections by taking a dip in the pond,” he said. “I have previously warned Congress allies from this very platform. I said that Congress is a liability. Congress is a parasite that wants to make a comeback by swallowing the vote bank of its allies,” he added.
PM Modi said a section within the Congress is uneasy with what he described as its negative style of politics and warned that this internal discomfort could eventually lead to another major split in the party. He said the Congress has become “Muslim-Leegi Maowadi Congress — MMC” and will witness a big split soon.
During his address, PM Modi wore a ‘gamchha’ with Mithila painting as a symbolic gesture and waved it to connect with the people of Bihar.
He said Bihar is the land that gave India the pride of being the mother of democracy, and that the same land has ensured that those attacking democracy “bite the dust”. “Bihar has shown again that lies are defeated and people’s trust wins,” he said.
He said the Bihar Assembly win marks the beginning of a new era and that the state will progress faster in the next five years. Bihar will see new industries, investments and jobs for the youth and prove its strength to the world, Modi said.
This victory has strengthened people’s confidence in the Election Commission, the Prime Minister added. He also hailed Nitish Kumar’s leadership and congratulated NDA allies for the win.
“The people of Bihar, with this massive victory and their unshakeable confidence, have taken the state by storm (‘garda uda diya’),” he said in the local lingo.
Modi praised the Election Commission for ensuring the smooth conduct of the polls and recalled how violence was once the norm during the “jungle raj”, an apparent reference to the RJD’s tenure.
He said the victory in Bihar had infused new energy in BJP workers in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Assam and West Bengal.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the overwhelming mandate for the NDA in Bihar was the people’s stamp of approval for its work on development, women’s safety, good governance and welfare of the poor.
“Every single vote cast by the people of Bihar is a symbol of trust in the Modi government’s policy against infiltrators who threaten India’s security and resources, and against those who support them. The public has given a strong answer to those who protect infiltrators for the sake of vote-bank politics,” he said in a series of posts on X.
The Home Minister said the people of Bihar had indicated the mood of the entire country — that purification of the voter list is essential and politics against it will not be accepted.
“This is why the Congress, under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, has today been relegated to the bottom rung in Bihar,” he said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the people of Bihar had given a historic mandate to the NDA, calling it a “victory of the politics of development”.
BJP national president J P Nadda hailed the NDA’s victory in the Bihar polls as “historic” and said it is a seal of trust for the development and welfare policies of the “double-engine” government of PM Modi and Nitish Kumar.
BJP’s election in-charge for Bihar and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that by giving a “decisive and unprecedented” mandate to the NDA, the people of Bihar had once again shown that development, good governance and stability remain their priorities.
BJP MP from Patna Sahib and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the people had voted for development and good governance, rising above caste and community.