Ahead of Nitish-Lalu Rally in Patna, BJP Hoardings Mock the Combine

The BJP hoardings have been strategically placed in Patna near Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s posters which talk of good governance.

Patna, Bihar:  Ahead of the much hyped rally being organised by Bihar Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United (JDU), Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and the Congress in Patna tomorrow, the BJP has put up their hoardings right next to those put up by JDU, to counter claims being made by the state government on various issues.

The rally will be the first big show of unity after Mr Kumar and Mr Prasad joined hands last year, to defeat the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the upcoming assembly elections.

The BJP hoardings have been strategically placed near Mr Kumar’s posters which talk of good governance.

Taking a dig at the state government’s claims, the hoardings mention the youth migrating to other states in search of jobs, deteriorating law and order situation, and poor condition of patients due to non-availability of medicines at health centres in the state.

In order to make the rally a huge success, Mr Prasad is busy addressing meetings in rural areas of districts close to Patna, asking his supporters to attend the rally. Mr Kumar has visited half-a-dozen districts, including his home district Nalanda in the past week, laying foundation stones and launching projects.

One of the hoardings put up by the BJP near the venue, Gandhi Maidan, says “kal tak ke jaani dushman, ab satta ke yaar hain,” or how erstwhile foes are now best friends, only with the aim of staying in power.

Undeterred, the grand alliance against the NDA says that the “Swabhiman Rally” will be an answer to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s arrogance and repeated insult to Bihar.

In an attempt to consolidate their social base, both Mr Kumar and Mr Prasad have backed the protests by the Patel community in Gujarat demanding their inclusion in the OBC category for reservation in jobs and colleges.

Earlier, PM Modi addressed three ‘Parivartan rallies’ in Muzaffarpur, Gaya and Saharsa in the state. He will address yet another rally in Bhagalpur on September 1.