Shivanand Tiwari at the news meet in Patna on Saturday. Picture by Ranjeet Kumar Dey

Patna, June 29: Senior JD(U) leader Shivanand Tiwari today took a dig at Narendra Modi’s claim of rescuing 15,000 people in Uttarakhand a day after chief minister Nitish Kumar held a meeting to counter the BJP attack.

Tiwari, a Rajya Sabha MP and JD(U) spokesperson, said Nitish was neither Rambo nor Robin Hood, who can rescue 15,000 people at one time. He was responding to a question on allegations of Bihar BJP leaders that the chief minister has failed to do enough for the people of Bihar trapped in the Uttarakhand floods.

He said: “Our chief minister is neither Rambo nor Robin Hood who can airlift 15,000 people at a time. Only God knows how Narendra Modi has done this. I am wondering how 80 SUVs reached Kedarnath when people were having problem to walk.

“Is it possible for one man to evacuate 15,000 people at one time? Is he is a super hero? The BJP leaders’ allegation that our chief minister was not serious about people from Bihar in Uttarakhand is baseless,” he added.

Yesterday, Nitish had convened an emergency meeting at 1 Aney Marg to counter the stepped-up attack from the BJP. He was also reportedly concerned over the silence of the party’s spokespersons and leaders and in a mood to launch a counter-offensive against his former ally. Tiwari, one of the three MPs called from New Delhi on short notice, today said the BJP leaders’ attack was a result of their frustration after losing power and position in the state.

Tiwari also pointed at the problems in the BJP house. He said: “Don’t they see what is happening in their own party? BJP leader Gopinath Munde has spent Rs 8 crore in the last Lok Sabha poll. How can anyone spend so much money? BJP leaders must see first what is happening in their own house and then blame others.”