Caught in the fire: Lalu Prasad, Muammar Gaddafi and Nitish Kumar

Patna, Feb. 27: RJD chief Lalu Prasad today broke his promise to remain silent for six months before speaking on the re-elected Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government and its performance. Unrest in Libya and Egypt appears to have inspired him to do so.

Lalu compared the Nitish regime with the dictatorship in Libya and Egypt while addressing a gathering at Bharatiya Nritya Kala Mandir on Sunday. The function was organised by Sant Ravi Das Chetna Manch to mark his 634th birth anniversary.

It is not as if Lalu forgot his promise. “I will not break my promise of keeping quiet for six months. Now I am just giving a tablet. Then I will give injection. If the government still does not listen, the state will witness agitation as in Libya and Egypt,” he said, trying to lift the morale of his demoralised supporters.

The speech of Lalu, known for its wit and humour, sounded more like trying to assure his supporters that he was not finished.

He claimed that he had kept his promise he made as railway minister to the people of Bihar. “But Nitish did not. He promised to give land to landless Dalits and Mahadalits. He (Nitish) has failed to keep his promise,” Lalu said.

Incidentally, the NDA regime had promised 3 decimal of land to Dalits who did not have any shelter. Recently, the government claimed that 90,000 Dalit families were given 3 decimal of land each.

Lalu dropped hints in Parliament that governments should change at regular intervals. “A chapatti on a heated pan needs to be turned the other side or else it will burn,” he said in his typical symbolical rhetoric.

Ironically, the RJD chief appears to have forgotten that he ruled Bihar 15 years at a stretch, while his archrival Nitish Kumar had entered the sixth year.

Hurling charges on Nitish, Lalu alleged that the present regime was forcing people to eat rotten flour. He alleged that the present regime was fooling the people in the state.

“How can a state develop when its agriculture production is going downwards,” he asked.

The RJD MP from Vaishali, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, attacked the Bihar government on the issue of alleged capture of Ramdhari Singh Dinkar’s house.

The Ravi Das Chetna Manch put forward 11 demands on behalf of the RJD to the present government.

The state president of the RJD, Ramchadra Purve, and RJD Rajya Sabha member Ram Kripal Yadav were also present at the event.