Gone in 26 Seconds. If you are thinking a remake of the Nicolas Cage-Angelina Jolie heist flick from 2000 is in the works, think again.
The blink-and-you-miss media conference where the NDA launched its manifesto for the Bihar elections in the presence of alliance luminaries like Nitish Kumar and J.P. Nadda drew much more attention for its duration of 26 seconds than the centrepiece promise of 1 crore jobs.
Held at a plush Patna hotel, the event saw Nitish, Nadda and other senior NDA leaders merely pose for photographs with copies of the manifesto before leaving without a word. The BJP’s media department cited the leaders’ packed campaign schedules to justify the rush.
Deputy chief minister and BJP leader Samrat Chaudhary stayed back to brief reporters on the key highlights of the 39-page manifesto, but the Opposition quickly pounced on the optics to allege that the BJP had “silenced” its ally.
“Why wasn’t Nitishji allowed to speak? Why are they even hesitant to mention his name? If they don’t want to project him as chief minister, they should say it openly,” Congress media and publicity department chairperson Pawan Khera said. “For the first time, we’ve seen a sitting chief minister of 20 years being silenced in this way. It’s truly shameful.”
The Opposition has repeatedly accused the BJP of using Nitish merely as a “mask” to win votes, claiming the party plans to edge him out of the chief minister’s post after the results.
Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav mocked the NDA, saying: “For the first time in history, a coalition’s manifesto was released in just 26 seconds. The NDA should bring a ‘sorry’ letter for Bihar, not a resolution letter!”
Veteran Congress leader and former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, who was in Patna, also took a swipe at the ruling alliance. “In 26 seconds, the NDA leaders released their manifesto and ran away to avoid questions from the media. This is not good for democracy,” he said.
Questioning Nitish’s absence from the proceedings, Gehlot added: “If he is leading the election, why didn’t he announce the manifesto himself? Was he not in a position to do so?” The reference appeared to be to the speculation over the chief minister’s health.
The NDA’s standout promise is the creation of one crore jobs, government and private combined, seen as a bid to counter a similar pledge by the Mahagathbandhan to ensure employment for at least one member of every Bihar family.
Focusing heavily on women’s empowerment, the manifesto promises to make one crore women self-reliant, earning at least ₹1 lakh annually. It also outlines a major infrastructure push, including four new international airports and seven expressways.
“For Bihar’s industrial development, we will set up factories in every district, develop 10 new industrial parks, 100 MSME parks and 50,000 cottage industries,” Chaudhary said. “A defence corridor and a semiconductor park will also be established. We will make Bihar the textile and silk hub of South Asia.”
Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor dismissed the promises, saying: “They have ruled Bihar for the last 20 years. Instead of a manifesto, they should have released a report card. Making new promises without fulfilling old ones has no meaning.”