Nitish Kumar Criticizes Lalu Prasad Yadav Over Women’s Development Record

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar tore into his former ally Lalu Prasad Yadav, accusing the RJD supremo of achieving "absolutely nothing" for women during his decade-long rule and only installing wifeRabri Devi as a desperate face-saving ploy amid the explosive fodder scam charges. The JD(U) boss, gunning for an unprecedented fifth straight term, declared his two ill-fated RJD tie-ups in 2015 and 2022 as "circumstantial mistakes" he regrets deeply, swearing unbreakable loyalty to the BJP-led NDA henceforth.

"Did the previous regime do a single thing for women? They couldn't care less!" Kumar thundered before thousands, contrasting Lalu's 1990-1997 tenure—ending with Rabri's controversial elevation as a political novice—with his own flagship schemes. He spotlighted the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana, which has already pumped ₹10,000 directly into bank accounts of over 1 crore women via massive self-help group networks, alongside reservations that propelled female representation in panchayats to 50%. "Only when the fodder scam noose tightened after seven years did they prop up the wife as CM—it was pure drama, not development," Kumar sneered, evoking the 1997 scandal that jailed Lalu and birthed "jungle raj" infamy.

The rally marked Kumar's sharpest pivot yet from Mahagathbandhan flirtations, where Tejashwi Yadav served as his deputy CM twice—first in the 18-month 2015-2017 stint that collapsed over corruption allegations, then the chaotic 2022-2023 reunion that lasted mere months before Nitish's dramatic NDA return. "Because of circumstances, I had to tie up with those people," he confessed. "But it took no time to realize they were good for nothing. Now I'm back in NDA for good—no more flip-flops!"

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Kumar painted a dystopian pre-2005 Bihar under RJD: kidnapping industries thriving, highways death traps, schools ghost buildings, and hospitals morgue-like. "An atmosphere of terror ruled—criminals were patronized, Hindus and Muslims clashed endlessly," he charged, crediting his 20-year reign for taming lawlessness through speedier trials, 5 lakh police hires, and landmark liquor ban that slashed domestic violence 40%. He boasted fencing graveyards and religious sites for both communities to douse communal sparks, alongside ₹2 lakh crore infrastructure blitz—7,000 km of new highways, 35,000 schools upgraded, and AIIMS-level hospitals in every division.

Hailing PM Modi's "unprecedented" central aid—₹1.25 lakh crore special package, doubled rural electrification, and Kosi-Mechi mega irrigation—Kumar positioned the NDA as Bihar's only growth engine. "Tejashwi talks big, but where's his report card? Zero jobs, zero vision," he mocked, as the crowd roared approval. With Tejashwi's RJD leading the opposition charge in a bitterly contested assembly poll kicking off October 28, Kumar's broadside signals a gloves-off war where women's votes, law-and-order nostalgia, and anti-dynasty sentiment will decide if the "Sushasan Babu" scripts creates history or gets toppled by the Yadav scion's youth wave. As choppers whirred overhead and tricolor flags blanketed Minapur, one message echoed loud: Nitish Kumar is all in with NDA—and out for RJD blood.

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