RJD's Lalu Yadav criticizes Nitish Kumar after central govt rejected JD(U)'s demand for special category status for Bihar

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav on July 22 took a jibe at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar after the Modi-led BJP government rejected Janata Dal United's (JDU) longstanding demand for special category status for the state.

Responding to queries from journalists about the government's statement in Parliament regarding JD(U)'s demand, Prasad criticized the CM, saying, “Nitish Kumar appears to have compromised Bihar's aspirations and the trust of its people for the sake of power. He had promised to secure special status for Bihar, but now that the government has denied it, he should resign.”

The central government on July 22 cited an inter-ministerial group report prepared in 2012 to assert that a case for granting special category status to Bihar is not made out; a stand which came a day after BJP's allies from Bihar demanded the status for the backward state.

In a written reply during the Monsoon session's first day in Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said, "The case for special category status for Bihar is not justified."

He elaborated that special category status had been historically granted by the National Development Council (NDC) to states with specific characteristics requiring special consideration.

The decision was taken based on an integrated consideration of all the factors listed above and the peculiar situation of a state, the minister said.

"Earlier, the request of Bihar for Special Category Status was considered by an Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) which submitted its Report on 30th March 2012. The IMG came to the finding that based on existing NDC criteria, the case for Special Category Status for Bihar is not made out," he said.

The Congress-led UPA was in power at the time.

JD(U) leader Sanjay Kumar Jha had voiced his party's demand for the status at an all-party meeting on July 21. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), also a BJP ally, and the opposition RJD echoed the same demand at the meeting.

The JD(U), though, has already conveyed to the union government that it is willing to settle for a special financial package in case the status cannot be granted to the state.

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress (YSR Congress) had made the same demand for Odisha and Andhra Pradesh respectively in the meeting.

The government has in the past also argued that the 14th Finance Commission report has ruled out the possibility of any more states being granted the status, which includes tax relief and higher central funding for the beneficiary states.

(PTI)