Tag: Nitish

Hello CM Sahab!

Coming from advertising background I wanted to start the letter by addressing you with “Dear Nitish” as in our work culture everyone is equal. The designation, position, office held, muscle power and even the age doesn’t make any difference whatsoever. However I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t do that because here in India, we still have this habit of looking up to certain people. Politicians who’re the part of the government definitely top this chart. With the position comes the power and over time these people become habituated of it. They think that they are “Mai-Baap” of the common men. It was this reason that Lalu Prasad Yadav became larger-than-life figure in the state of Bihar. It belittled the common men so much in his eyes that he could barely see them. He could barely relate to them. He could barely empathize. And he barely thought about them. That’s where his downfall (and your peak) started.

I am afraid CM Sahab, you’ve embarked up on the same path. Bihar, politics, Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar don’t make sense to you as separate words. They have to be together to make sense to you. The position is now the only thing you want. That’s all what you want to be – Nitish Kumar, CM Bihar. That’s all that matters to you today. Beyond that, I believe, you don’t see anything. That’s bad and unfortunate.

What made you, you?

It wasn’t the assemble elections of 2005 that made you. It all started exactly 15 years before that. It started when the Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD got the reins of the state. It’s when the golden period of Lalu Prasad Yadav and the darkest possible period of Bihar started. Riding high on the “MY” vote-bank, Lalu got carried away. He thought that the Muslims and Yadavs of Bihar are his people. People, he thought were blind to see the reality. While the MY people gave him what Lalu wanted, the reciprocation didn’t happen. The “Pasmanda” (lower Muslims) people saw that everything done for the Muslims was limited to the Ashraf Muslims, who were already better off. Furthermore, under the Rabri Devi led government, the brothers-in-law of Lalu Prasad Yadav played havoc to the state and its subjects.

While Yadavs were too spellbound to see a Yadav in-charge of the state, the Pasmanda dreams were shattered. That’s where you came in. You tapped this opportunity beautifully. You wooed the Muslims, brought in the Dalits and Mahadalits. You partnered with the BJP but ensured that Bihar remains out of bounds for Modi. The alliance with the BJP ensured the votes of the upper castes and an easy access to media, bureaucracy and judiciary. It worked! You did it! It was a landslide victory and you became the new face of Bihar. The face of new hope. The face of new possibilities. The face of the new Bihar that, despite the difficulties and adversities, wanted to emerge for good.

But then, you screwed up!

It all started before the 2014 General Elections. Cutting the long story short – the BJP roped in Narendra Modi as their PM candidate and you panicked. You panicked because

1. You had started to dream by then. The dream of becoming the Prime Minister of the country. With Modi as the face of elections, you knew there was not even a minuscule chance for anyone else, if at all.
2. Becoming an ally of Modi led BJP would turn the Pasmandas off. No matter what you do, for Muslims Modi was synonymous to 2002 riots.

Calling the successful coalition of good 2 terms was your decision. It was a firm decision and you stood by it. Fine, you didn’t want to let a “Communal Modi” lead the nation and you did what you felt was right for you, your party, and the state of Bihar.

But then you didn’t stop there.

• 10 years back, Bihar was a cuss word. “Bihari ho kya?”, “Sala Bihari” were condescending remarks. All thanks to Lalu Prasad Yadav, “Bihari” became a very well accepted way of abusing a person. And you’re with him. You’re with your archrival. You’re with the man who ruined Bihar. Wow!
• What’s with this Maha-Gathbandhan? You really think this will work?
• This year only you didn’t share the stage with Lalu Prasad Yadav on 2 different occasions. Now you’re going to share the power with him. How can you even justify this? Isn’t this sheer greed?
• In last 2 assembly elections Congress won 4 and 10 seats respectively and you’re letting them waste 40 seats this time?
• RJD won 22 and 54 seats and this time they are going to contest on 100 seats. So in short, you have given away 140 seats just like that. Really?
• The Nitish Kumar supporters of these 140 constituencies will have to vote for Congress and RJD. In other words, SCs, OBCs, and Mahadalits will have to vote for a Yadav in some constituencies? Wow!
• You think the Yadavs will vote for you? As per the news, over 10,000 Yadavs have been killed in past 10 years. Are they still there in RJD’s reach?
• You think with All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen or AIMIM of Asaduddin Owaisi planning to contest 24 seats in the Seemanchal region of Kishanganj, Purnia, Katihar and Araria wouldn’t spoil your game?
• Where are Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Jagadanand Singh, Prabhunath Singh and Mohammad Taslimuddin? You think these RJD leaders will let you bring down their political career?
• Not to forget the Jeetan Ram Manjhi debacle. You sure you still have the Mahadalits with you under your fold?

A lot of readers would wonder that nowhere have I talked about the developmental works your coalition government has done. There is no doubt that a lot of groundwork happened. You rose above sectarian politics and worked for everyone there. A lot was done in Bihar and still a lot needs to be done. Unfortunately your entire focus has been on Narendra Modi and BJP.

Summing it up

The saying goes, “you shot yourself in the foot”. However in your case, you have shot yourself in the head. The game is going to get over. Soon.

Lalu’s misdeeds paved the way for your government. Your electoral misdeeds have already paved the way for Modi and the BJP.

Today, #ModiInBihar is just a trend on Twitter. Very soon, it can be the reality of Bihar.

However

C’mon, this is Bihar! One cannot be sure on what grounds the voters will vote. The wisdom of voters of Bihar (and my home state UP) is worth a research. When they can vote Rabri Devi to power, the ray of hope isn’t dead for you. Get your caste cards right. Go play politics, the Bihar way – after all it’s a game of “Biradari” and “Bahubali”.

Who am I to write you?

I am no one. Seriously, I am no one. I don’t reside in Bihar. I am neither a voter nor any influencer for Bihar elections (any election for that matter). I don’t have much understanding of the way things work in Bihar. However coming from the neighboring state of Uttar Pradesh, I can say with confidence that politics there in Bihar are pretty same. Caste and religion end up becoming the key factors while development takes a backseat.

So while you have an easy option of ignoring me and this letter casually, I’d suggest you to think about it.

Regards,

PS: Your new found love with Arvind Kejriwal and AAP wouldn’t work. That guy is a novice. Look beyond him.