Nitish, Rabri engage in war of words in council

PATNA: For the second time in a week, chief minister Nitish Kumar and his predecessor Rabri Devi engaged in a heated exchange in the Bihar Legislative Council on Wednesday.

While Nitish said Rabri was the “CM of circumstances”, the former CM accused the JD(U) leader of “insulting the women folks”.

Trouble began when CPI-ML member, Shashi Yadav, rose from her seat to submit before the House that she was not satisfied with the govt’s reply to her question. The CM reacted by saying the govt is doing so much for women while the previous govt did nothing. This irked Rabri, who rose to intervene, asking the govt to bring the records of that period to know what was done by the previous govt.

Reacting sharply to her observations, Nitish accused RJD chief Lalu Prasad of installing his wife as the CM when he was forced to step down. Rabri hit back, accusing the CM of “disrespecting” all women folk through his words, alleging no substantial work was done under his leadership before staging a walkout with opposition members in protest.

Rabri first became the CM in 1997 when her husband Lalu Prasad resigned as CM, after the CBI submitted a chargesheet against him in the multi-crore fodder scam. She ruled the state for eight years.

Nitish in his speech had informed the House how his govt had done a lot for every class, including women, who were granted 50% reservation in panchayati raj institutions and how it launched several initiatives to empower the women. He reiterated that he won’t go back to the opposition alliance any more asserting “Ab sab din ke liye saath rahange...idhar-udhar nahin jayenge (I won’t waver, will remain with the NDA always).”Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Holi Day wishes, messages and quotes !