Shah Accuses Nitish Govt of Inflating Muslim,Yadav Population in Bihar's Caste Survey

Patna: Union home minister Amit Shah sounded the bugle for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Bihar on Sunday with a fiery rally in Muzaffarpur district, marking the beginning of an early campaign in the state.

The Union home minister launched a scathing attack on chief minister Nitish Kumar and the Opposition bloc INDIA. He urged the masses to ensure the victory of the NDA in the coming 2024 Lok Sabha and 2025 Bihar Assembly elections for "the development of Bihar".

Addressing the rally in Muzaffarpur, the home minister alleged that the Bihar government had deliberately showed inflated Muslim and Yadav population figures in its caste survey report under RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav’s pressure for "appeasement politics".  

He said the caste-based survey was done with the BJP’s support. The decision to conduct the survey was taken when Nitish Kumar was with the NDA. "It was the BJP which supported Nitish Kumar’s decision to conduct a caste survey in Bihar. But we did not know the Nitish Kumar government would release a report with inflated Muslim and Yadav population figures for appeasement politics under Lalu Prasad Yadav’s pressure", Mr Amit Shah said.

Targeting the Opposition bloc INDIA, of which both Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) and Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD are key constituents, Mr Shah alleged that the "INDIA alliance has only one agenda, to oppose Narendra Modi. When they were in power previously, they were involved in scams worth lakhs of crores".

He said, "One aspires to



become Prime Minister, while the other seeks to position his son as the chief minister. Nitish Kumar should abandon his dreams of becoming the Prime Minister because the INDIA alliance didn’t even make him the convenor. Oil and water can never mix, they separate".

During the rally, Mr Shah accused Mr Nitish Kumar of "betraying the people’s mandate" by quitting the NDA and forming a government with the support of the RJD and the Congress.

Mr Shah urged the masses to support the BJP in forming a government in Bihar in 2025. He asserted: "Every time you bless us, ‘palturam’ (turncoat) turned his back and betrayed the mandate. This time, I am here to ask you to support the BJP in forming the government in Bihar in 2025".

He also expressed the BJP’s ambition to win all 40 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, saying: "In 2014, the people of Bihar granted 31 seats to Modiji, and in 2019, you gave us 39 seats. This time with your support, we hope to win all 40 seats".

During the rally, Mr Shah contended that "the Congress consistently boycotted and opposed the backward communities, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi showed respect to the community". He emphasised the constitutional recognition given to the OBC community and noted that 27 ministers from the OBC community are part of the Modi Cabinet.

Union home minister Amit Shah’s visit to Muzaffarpur was part of the BJP’s outreach programme ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.