The BJP today expressed fear that the spectre of 'jungle raj' loomed large over Bihar and would derail the development process undertaken by the erstwhile NDA government a decade ago following the JD(U)-RJD prepoll alliance for the impending bypolls in the state.
Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters the government was "patronising criminal elements of political background" after the JD(U)-RJD alliance for the bypolls to ten assembly polls on August 25.
"The state government has apparently gone soft on criminal elements with political background post the JD(U)-RJD alliance and the kin of ex-RJD MP Prabhunath Singh, who played a key role in bringing his party supremo Lalu Prasad and former chief minister Nitish Kumar together to stitch up a pre-poll alliance for bypoll on ten assembly seats, have been let off in a murder case three years ago," Modi said.
Singh's younger brother Kedarnath Singh, who is the RJD MLA from Baniapur assembly seat in Saran district, elder brother Dinanath Singh and nephew Sudhir Kumar Singh have been given a breather in the murder case of the JD(U) leader Kameshwar Singh's security guard Munna Singh at Mashrakh three years ago with the case being handed over to the CID for probe despite the fact that the then Muzaffarpur zone IG Gupteshwar Pandey had submitted a chargesheet in the said case in the Patna High Court on June 24, 2012, he said.
The accused persons, who had been evading arrest after rejection of their anticipatory bail by a district court, were seen publicly at a function with the ex-RJD MP's son Randhir Singh who filed his nomination from Chapra assembly seat recently, Modi said while and regretted the government's new-found 'soft attitude' against criminal elements will vitiate law and order situation in Bihar.
Going by the manner in which the state government has adopted 'go soft' tactics against criminals beginning with relief to the ex-RJD MP's kin, the cases against another RJD MP Md. Shahabuddin and Ritlal Yadav may be soft pedalled in the days to come, the former deputy chief minister said.
Pointing an accusing finger at the former chief minister Nitish Kumar, Modi held the former responsible for the JD(U) government's 'soft attitude' towards criminal elements particularly those with political background and accused Kumar of completely surrendering to diktats of the RJD supremo Lalu Prasad by allowing his tainted men to go scot-free in criminal cases.
