Tejashwi Yadav Challenges Nitish Kumar on Costly Mahila Samvad Yatra
Click to start listening
Patna Dec 11 (NationPress) Tejashwi Yadav, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, challenged Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday, ahead of his Mahila Samvad Yatra, questioning the hefty allocation of Rs 225.78 crore for the initiative.
The Mahila Samvad Yatra is set to commence on December 15 in Bagaha, West Champaran, and will last for 15 days, during which Nitish Kumar will engage with women and children across various districts of Bihar.
Yadav's criticism focused on the financial outlay, portraying it as an extravagant misuse of taxpayer funds.
He stated, "Money makes business deals, not dialogue. For communication, it requires love, not money."
He also questioned how such a large expenditure could be justified for a 15-day event, accusing the government of utilizing public resources for political purposes.
The substantial budget allocation has faced intense scrutiny from the Opposition, with assertions that the initiative may emphasize appearances over genuine results. However, the Bihar government has defended the yatra as a means to enhance dialogue with women and address their issues at the grassroots.
Tejashwi Yadav accused the Chief Minister of prioritizing an expensive election picnic instead of tackling the state's urgent problems while it grapples with ongoing challenges.
“In the last 20 years, unemployment, migration, inflation, crime, and massive corruption have surged drastically. Bihar remains a backward state, yet the Chief Minister of such a state is embarking on an expensive election picnic,” he remarked.
Highlighting governance failures during Nitish Kumar's tenure, Yadav pointed out issues like the deterioration of bridges and culverts due to mismanagement, lives lost in recurring hooch tragedies, alleged corruption in smart meter projects, and the failure of the liquor prohibition law.
Yadav also condemned the absence of concrete outcomes for women and children, stating, “There is nothing tangible for women and children, yet he is willing to spend billions of rupees through bureaucrats.”
