Patna, July 9: RJD chief Lalu Prasad today attacked ministers of the Narendra Modi government and termed them "sycophants".
Lalu was reacting to comments made by defence minister Manohar Parrikar, who had recently said that Narendra Modi was the only Prime Minister after Lal Bahadur Shastri to have inspired people to change their thinking.
Lalu made the comment on Modi's ministers on the sidelines of an Id Milan programme organised by the Bihar unit of Jamait-Ulama at AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies.
Reacting to Parrikar's comment, Lalu said: "Narendra Modi ke adhiktar mantri chaaplus hain (Most of Narendra Modi's ministers are sycophants). Without sycophancy they cannot earn their livelihood."
Parrikar, speaking at a government function in Margao, Goa, on Friday, had said that people had responded to then Prime Minister Shastri's appeal in 1965 (at the time of the Pakistan war), and today, 50 years later, the same response was being seen. Parrikar had also said people had started thinking differently.
Lalu said the ministers at the Centre had nothing to do with people-centric work and most of them were busy with sycophancy.
However, Modi's ministers reacted sharply to Lalu's comment.
Former aide of Lalu and now junior minister in Modi's government Ram Kripal Yadav called Lalu a sycophant.
" Sabko malum hai, Sonia Gandhi ka chaaplus kaun tha UPA government mein (Everyone knows who was being a sycophant to Sonia Gandhi in the UPA government). Whatever Parrikarji said is correct and only those people who are jealous of Modi ji's good work can use such words. They are shattered seeing such unprecedented support for Modiji's work," Ram Kripal said.
"Lalu Prasad always says meaningless things," said Upendra Kushwaha, another minister from Bihar in the Modi government. "He only knows how to crack jokes, talk nonsense and raise non-serious issues. I think people don't even take notice of his comments because he raises irrelevant issues. I strongly support what Parrikar ji has said about our Prime Minister Narendra Modiji."
The RJD chief also attacked home minister Rajnath Singh for seeking armed guards on commercial flights for his security.
