‘They Only Know How to Wield Lathis’: PM Modi’s ‘Jungle Raj’ Barb at Bihar Opposition
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a blistering attack on the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Thursday, accusing the opposition of propagating “jungle raj” politics that he said has destroyed two generations in Bihar. Addressing BJP workers ahead of the state elections, Modi declared that the upcoming polls are about writing a new chapter in Bihar’s history, a task in which the youth will play a decisive role.
He expressed confidence that the people of the state would once again choose the “double-engine” government of the NDA.During the ‘Mera Booth Sabse Mazboot’ programme, the Prime Minister urged party workers to remind the younger generation of the atrocities committed during the RJD’s tenure. “People will not forget for another 100 years the ‘jungle raj’ in Bihar, no matter how much the opposition tries to hide their misdeeds,” Modi stated. He directly linked the previous government’s rule to the rise of Naxal terror, which he said was used to their advantage. “Maoists would not allow the opening of schools, colleges, hospitals, or anything else, and they would destroy established institutions with bombs,” he added, asserting that the RJD prioritized its own self-interest over the state’s development.
In a sharp jibe at the opposition’s grand alliance, Modi rebranded it as a “lathbandhan.” “Those who call themselves Mahagathbandhan, the people of Bihar call them a ‘lathbandhan’. They only know how to wield lathis and fight. For them, their own self-interest is above all,” he remarked. In contrast, he positioned the NDA as the force that has worked tirelessly to pull Bihar out of the “darkness of jungle raj and into the new light of development.”The Prime Minister emphasized that securing the future of Bihar’s youth is the NDA’s foremost duty.
He promised that a new era of women’s empowerment would begin in the state on November 14, when he said the NDA would be voted back into power. Modi concluded by saying the state is no longer wilting under ‘jungle raj’ but is now moving forward with the promise of “jan vishwas” or public trust.
