Law Kumar Mishra
Patna, October 28
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will not campaign for the RJD candidates in Gopalganj and Mokama constituencies, where by-elections to the state assembly are scheduled for November 3.
Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav said on Friday that Nitish was not well, hence he dropped the program though he was named a star campaigner of the Mahagathbandhan. In both the places, RJD has fielded its candidates.
According to JDU sources here, Nitish decided against seeking votes for the RJD candidates because both are with tainted past. Ms Neelam Devi, wife of the jailed ousted MLA, Anant Singh has many cases pending against here in Patna and Barh courts. She is accused under the Arms Act and also charged with an attempt to murder.
In Gopalganj, the RJD candidate, Mohan Prasad Gupta is named in cases even in neighbouring Jharkhand, where police is searching him for his alleged involvement in a liquor prohibition violation case. Gupta is the director of a liquor manufacturing company too.
Nitish Kumar’s program was finalized earlier and he was scheduled to visit both constituencies today (Friday), but he decided against visiting either Mokama or Gopalganj. Chief Minister is keeping himself away from the campaign to maintain his clean image in politics, claimed a JDU leader.
A delegation of BJP leaders met the chief election officer here and demanded the shifting of a muscleman, Anant Singh from Patna Central Jail alleging he was giving instructions from the jail itself and Gupta ‘s candidature should be canceled because he had hidden material facts about his criminal antecedents.
Tejashwi has deputed all the ministers from RJD quota in the campaign at both places and sent his MLAs in different panchayats too. District Magistrate of Gopalganj, Kaushal Kishore Chaudhury today advised the leaders from outside the district to leave Gopalganj by Saturday evening. He said all borders and entry points from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, Muzaffarpur and Chapra would be sealed after the Chhath festival on October 31 to prevent anti-social elements into the constituency.
In Gopalganj, the Mama (brother of former Chief Minister Rabri Devi),Sadhu Yadav has made the task of his Bhanja (Tejashwi) difficult by putting his wife, Indira Devi as Bahujan Samaj Party candidate against the RJD candidate. RJD faces another problem from the AIMIMIM candidate too and with the presence of the two candidates-Yadav and Muslim, there may be a major dent into the MY vote bank of RJD. Ms Indira Devi may also cut into the Dalit and OBC votes of the RJD candidate because she is the Bahujan Samaj Party nominee.
BJP has fielded Ms Kusum Devi, widow of the former minister, Subhash Singh.
In Mokama, district administration ordered externment of 38 people with criminal past from Patna district and deployed four companies of mounted police for patrolling in the riverine areas of the constituency.
