 "JD(U)'s allegations against BJP are baseless: Sushil Kumar Modi")
Since Janata Dal (United) [JD (U)] and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called off their association of 17 years, the two have been bombarding each other with allegations. Bihar's former deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader, Sushil Kumar Modi, speaks with Satyavrat Mishra about the breakup and its fallout
Your separation with JD (U) was bitter. Why?
We were voted to be a part of the government, not for sitting in the opposition benches. People had given a joint mandate to both the parties for good governance. Nitish Kumar betrayed the mandate and compelled us to sit in the opposition by making an issue of the elevation of Narendra Modi. We were forced out through manipulation and conspiracy. But we are not a demoralised opposition like Rashtriya Janata Dal whom people rejected because of bad governance and reduced its strength to 24. We have a strength of 91 MLAs. We have done nothing wrong, that's why we are not afraid of voicing our opinions.
We are now going to the people as we did in 2005, when the then governor, Buta Singh, dissolved the Bihar assembly without giving the National Democratic Alliance a chance to form the government, despite it winning most of the seats. We are telling the people how their mandate was betrayed. The ruling party is afraid of our reach in the masses. Therefore, the noise level is so high.
The state government has blamed BJP and other opposition parties for many untoward incidents that have taken place in Bihar in the last few months. Your views.
Between November 2005 and June 2013, both BJP and JD (U) worked hard to create a positive image of Bihar. But the last couple of months have seen several untoward incidents. These incidents, especially the serial blasts in Bodh Gaya and the mid-day meal tragedy in Saran, have dented Bihar’s image tremendously. These incidents are happening because Kumar has lost his grip on the administration. His priorities have changed. JD (U) is blaming the opposition, especially BJP, to hide its failures. It is now blaming us even for the contaminated water. But it has no evidence against us. This shows how baseless its allegations are. So, it is propagating conspiracy theories to save face. It’s an old trick. We have seen Indira Gandhi accusing socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan of being a CIA agent and a fascist. When governments become weak, they use this trick to hide their failures, misdeeds and non-governance.
The government and police say the ruckus you created at Bodh Gaya and Saran hindered investigation.
That’s a complete lie. Our call for bandh did not hinder any relief or investigation work anywhere. In Saran, all the patients were taken to hospitals on the day of the tragedy. The bandh happened on the next day. It was an expression of public anger. The people who took to the streets were not BJP workers. We do not have those many workers. Moreover, in a democracy, it’s the right of any political party to call for a peaceful bandh. In Bodh Gaya too, the team of the National Investigation Agency reached after 14 hours. That was not because of the bandh but because it had a smaller aircraft.
Your separation with JD (U) was bitter. Why?
We were voted to be a part of the government, not for sitting in the opposition benches. People had given a joint mandate to both the parties for good governance. Nitish Kumar betrayed the mandate and compelled us to sit in the opposition by making an issue of the elevation of Narendra Modi. We were forced out through manipulation and conspiracy. But we are not a demoralised opposition like Rashtriya Janata Dal whom people rejected because of bad governance and reduced its strength to 24. We have a strength of 91 MLAs. We have done nothing wrong, that's why we are not afraid of voicing our opinions.
We are now going to the people as we did in 2005, when the then governor, Buta Singh, dissolved the Bihar assembly without giving the National Democratic Alliance a chance to form the government, despite it winning most of the seats. We are telling the people how their mandate was betrayed. The ruling party is afraid of our reach in the masses. Therefore, the noise level is so high.
The state government has blamed BJP and other opposition parties for many untoward incidents that have taken place in Bihar in the last few months. Your views.
Between November 2005 and June 2013, both BJP and JD (U) worked hard to create a positive image of Bihar. But the last couple of months have seen several untoward incidents. These incidents, especially the serial blasts in Bodh Gaya and the mid-day meal tragedy in Saran, have dented Bihar’s image tremendously. These incidents are happening because Kumar has lost his grip on the administration. His priorities have changed. JD (U) is blaming the opposition, especially BJP, to hide its failures. It is now blaming us even for the contaminated water. But it has no evidence against us. This shows how baseless its allegations are. So, it is propagating conspiracy theories to save face. It’s an old trick. We have seen Indira Gandhi accusing socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan of being a CIA agent and a fascist. When governments become weak, they use this trick to hide their failures, misdeeds and non-governance.
The government and police say the ruckus you created at Bodh Gaya and Saran hindered investigation.
That’s a complete lie. Our call for bandh did not hinder any relief or investigation work anywhere. In Saran, all the patients were taken to hospitals on the day of the tragedy. The bandh happened on the next day. It was an expression of public anger. The people who took to the streets were not BJP workers. We do not have those many workers. Moreover, in a democracy, it’s the right of any political party to call for a peaceful bandh. In Bodh Gaya too, the team of the National Investigation Agency reached after 14 hours. That was not because of the bandh but because it had a smaller aircraft.
After the railway incident at Dhamara, we did not call for any bandh. Yet people came on the road and expressed their anger. People now see us as a credible and competent alternative to JD (U).
But did this not shift focus from the real issues to the BJP-JD (U) spat?
The government tries its best to divert focus, but we were successful in exposing its failures in the mid-day meal scheme. It was not able to convince the people that the tragedy was a result of a political conspiracy.
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There is a minority and weak government in the state; so, all types of powers are raising their heads. In the last few months, Naxal incidents have gone up. Crime is on the rise. The situation has gone completely out of control. Cases of communal tension also indicate that the state government has lost grip over the administration. Naxals, criminals and communal forces now think that they are free to do whatever they want to.
There seems to be some confusion in your rank and file while taking on the Kumar government. Your state president, Mangal Pandey, had even defended Kumar on the Dhamara rail tragedy. Why?
There may be a difference in articulation, but there is no difference of opinion within BJP. He may have used mild words to attack the state government, but the message was the same. We are united in pointing out governance lapses. Earlier, the opposition was very weak and even non-existent in the state. Now the government has to face a strong opposition, which has the potential to become an alternative to the present government. Bihar has never seen such strong opposition.
Bihar still lacks basic amenities. Instead of making them an election issue, BJP in Bihar is focused more on Narendra Modi. Why?
That’s not the case. We raised the issue of draught in the state on a large scale. We also took up the issue of mid-day meal tragedy and other incidents. We will take up other development issues too. But we are also a political party and want to score better in next year's election. Modi is our most popular leader and people even in the remotest regions of the state associate with him.
But one thing is clear. Whoever wins in the 2014 election, Bihar will be the biggest loser because of the BJP-JD (U) split. Had we been together, then despite all problems, the development of the state would not have suffered.
Every political party is aiming for next year's election. Until there is a performing government in New Delhi, the development of the state will suffer. If BJP forms the next government with Modi as the prime minister, that would be beneficial for the country. Our resolution was the reflection of the sentiments of our workers in Bihar. People in Bihar also want Modi to be the next prime minister. The split was forced upon us in his name. So, there is a wave of sympathy for Modi and BJP, and we want to use that in our favour.
We conveyed the mood of our workers and people through our resolution. Our central leadership has said that it will consider it. We tried to clear the air that some people within BJP are creating a hindrance for Modi.
Lalu Yadav's brother-in-law, Sadhu Yadav, met Modi some days ago. Will he be inducted in BJP?
There is no question of that. Modiji is a big leader. If anybody wants to meet him, he is free to do that. Unlike Nitish Kumar, Modi does not treat anyone as an untouchable. Meeting someone is common courtesy. That does not mean that Sadhu Yadav would be inducted in BJP. We will never induct people like Sadhu Yadav.