'Jungle raj': Amit Shah blames Mahagathbandhan government for Bihar violence
Union Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah on Sunday blamed Bihar's Mahagathbandhan coalition government led by CM Nitish Kumar for the communal violence in the state that first erupted on Ram Navami. He accused Kumar of allying with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which he claimed brought a "jungle raj" in Bihar and deteriorated its law and order, due to the CM's hunger for power.
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This is Shah's fourth visit to Bihar since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost power in the state in August 2022 when Kumar's Janata Dal-United left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition and joined the RJD's Mahagathbandhan coalition. Shah is in the eastern state amid communal tensions that initially arose during the Ram Navami celebrations on Thursday—providing him ammunition to target the state administration.
'Nitish Kumar sat in Lalu's lap due to power hunger'
Speaking in Bihar's Nawada, Shah said, "The government...has jungle raj's Lalu Prasad Yadav's party, can that government bring peace in Bihar? Nitish Kumar sat in his lap due to power hunger. We will uproot the Mahagathbandhan government." On the violence in Bihar's Sasaram, he said, "People are being killed...bullets are fired and tear-gas shelling is happening. I will come to Sasaram...on my next visit."
Watch: Amit Shah addressing rally in Nawada
NDA doors forever shut for JD(U), says Shah
While urging people to maintain peace in the state amid the turmoil, Shah stated that the NDA's doors are now forever shut to Kumar's JD(U). Kumar and Yadav, according to him, are living in a delusion of winning the next elections. "Nitish Kumar's PM dreams won't be fulfilled... The jungle raj in Bihar has returned after Lalu Prasad's party came to power," he alleged.
Shah canceled visit to Sasaram following restrictions
On Saturday evening, the Union home minister landed in Patna, where he met with state BJP officials at a local hotel. He was supposed to visit Sasaram in Rohtas district on Sunday. His trip was, however, canceled following the communal violence and imposition of restrictions under CrPC Section 144. Violence erupted in the area during a Ram Navami procession last week.
Tensions high in Bihar after communal violence
Meanwhile, tensions remained high in Bihar even days after Ram Navami, with authorities reporting new violence in Rohtas and Nalanda districts on Saturday. One person reportedly died, and several others were injured after clashes broke out between two groups in Nalanda's Bihar Sharif on Saturday evening. Separately, six people were injured in a bomb blast in Rohtas district's Sasaram.
