Updated: November 5, 2020 10:40:23 am
Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar addresses an electoral rally for the Assembly elections, in Bhagalpur, on Saturday, October 31, 2020 (PTI).
Addressing demonstrations on Wednesday in the northeast region of the state’s Seemanchal, which has a sizeable minority community, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar reached out to Muslims, addressed fears about the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and reminded the crowds that his government had increased the salaries of teachers in madrasas.
With the region seeing widespread protests against the CAA, Nitish said in Kishanganj that his government had worked to “spread love, peace and brotherhood”, and “no one had the strength to send anyone out of the country.”
Attacking those “rumors spread by the CAA and the NRC (National Registry of Citizens)”, the leader of JD (U) said: “Who keeps spreading misinformation, keeps talking nonsense? Who will send someone out of the country? Nobody has the strength to do that to our people. Sab Hindustan ke hain, sab Bharat ke hain. Kaun isko bahar karega (They all belong to Hindustan, they all belong to Bharat. Who will kick someone out)?
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Nitish said his government had always “worked for an environment of love, brotherhood and compassion.” “We try to unite everyone. Some people want society to keep fighting, (so that) there is no need to work. We continue working, that is our goal. When we all live in peace, love and brotherhood, only then will society advance, people will advance, development will occur ”.
At a rally in Araria, Nitish said that only his government had thought of teachers in madrasas. “Before, did the teachers in the madrasas receive anything? Sanskrit teachers and madrasa teachers had gone to Patna … it wasn’t our government then … Did they get anything? … The salaries that are given to teachers in government schools, that’s what we give to teachers in madrasas. “
Expecting Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM to make headway in the region, Nitish urged the crowd to think “carefully” about “how much work” his government had done. “Before, how many madrasas were recognized? How many more madrasas did we recognize? “
Nitish also focused in his speeches on his government’s work for underserved communities and women, considered his loyal constituency.
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At Araria, he said, “Those of us who were on the margins, we made special policies for them. Please see the respect that women were given earlier. There were so few public representatives. When we had the opportunity, we gave them a 50% reserve in panchayati raj institutions and municipal corporations. There have been three elections and look at the high number of women (who participate)… In the same way, for the programmed castes, programmed tribes and extremely backward classes, we gave reservations. And in the EBC, everyone is included, of all religions. “
Nitish added that when he first came to power, children from marginalized communities did not even attend school. “We found out they were from Mahadalit or minority communities … We worked to get them to school and we created tola sevaks, markaz sevaks, we put 30,000 people to work … Now there is no one left, almost nothing.”
Attacking the RJD for its government’s record of law and order, the CM said: “Did anyone dare to go out earlier? Now you can see peace in society. There was so much crime, so many riots, so many kidnappings. We control all of this. “
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