Narendra Modi, Amit Shah in the line of fire over Bihar poll debacle

Patna: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah came in the line of fire over the Bihar poll debacle with party MP Bhola Singh accusing them of injecting communalism in a campaign that, he said, should have been about the state's development.

Flaying Modi for his use of "indecorous language", the veteran party leader said he came in RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's trap and "fell" to his standards while Chief Minister Nitish Kumar remained dignified, attracting voters from across communities.

"People went to Modi looking for a Prime Minister but they found a Lalu in him," the Begusarai MP said, in a first direct attack on Modi by a BJP leader after the party crashed to a humiliating defeat.

To a question if Modi and Shah communalised campaign by raking up issues like reservation for Muslims and Pakistan, he said, "Definitely. Or for what else you will raise the issue of cow or Pakistan. The campaign should have been about Bihar's backwardness and its development but we lost our way and fell into a ditch."

While Modi lost his dignity during the campaign, Kumar remained dignified and "did not become animal in the battle field", he said.

"Prime Minister fell to Lalu's googly and left his 'sabka saath sabka vikas' pitch. He started speaking in Lalu's language. He began using undignified language while Nitish Kumar did not forget decorum even in the battle field.”

"Prime Minister is the mirror of the nation. He enjoys the nation's trust. But when people went to Modi looking for a Prime Minister, they found a Lalu in him. So they went to Nitish who was dignified," the eight-time Bihar MLA who is serving second term as MP said.

Criticising Modi for making Giriraj Singh a minister, he said somebody, who said those do not vote for BJP should go to Pakistan, should not have been made minister.

He also hit out at RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for his quota comments, saying if he calls the Sangh a cultural body, then he should not have made a political statement during a crucial election.

Though many BJP MPs from Bihar, including Hukumdev Narayan Yadav, Shatrughan Sinha and R K Singh, have expressed their reservations at various asepcts of the party's campaign, this is the first time an MP has directly attacked Modi and Shah.

Singh said BJP deployed in Bihar the same technique it had in Delhi assembly polls, a reference to ignoring local leaders.

He also accused BJP's allies of selling away their tickets, adding that they also preferred upper castes candidates and turned their eyes from the ground realities.

Against an established leader like Nitish Kumar and mass politician like Lalu Prasad, BJP could offer no alternative and made it a battle between the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister.

The NDA lost because Biharis did not connect to our campaign, he said.

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