Patna, July 26: Deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi today defended the allotment of Bihar Industrial Area Development Authority (Biada) plots claiming that the previous governments of the Congress and the RJD had also adopted the policy of “first come, first served” to relatives of politicians.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar, on the other hand, dismissed the controversy saying “the matter is over now”. Nitish made the comment after emerging from a Cabinet meeting at the secretariat here.

“Ever since Biada came into existence in 1974, except on one occasion in 2007, Biada land/plots were never auctioned. Be it the Congress or the RJD regime, plots were allotted to relatives of politicians on the basis of nomination,” Modi said while interacting with reporters on the sidelines of his weekly janata darbar at his official residence, I Polo Road.

Enumerating the names of relatives of politicians who got the plots during the Congress and RJD regimes, Modi said relatives of politicians like Congress leaders Chandrashekhar Singh, Samir Mahaseth, Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav, Jagannath Rai, Veena Shahi, L P Shahi, NCP leader Tariq Anwar, LJP leader Shamsuddin, former legislator and LJP leader Vijendra Choudhary also got plots without any auction. Modi, however, was quick to add that he was not saying anything was wrong with the earlier allotments, rather he was just trying to pinpoint the bare facts about the process.

Meanwhile, JD(U) national spokesman and Rajya Sabha member Shivanand Tiwari today countered the accusations of Leader of Opposition, Abdul Bari Siddiqui, against state’s chief secretary Anup Mukerjee, saying: “Anup Mukerjee’s credibility as an officer can’t be questioned. He is the most competent and honest officer which can be gauged from the fact that he was named in the panel of five officers for the appointment of central vigilance commissioner,” Tiwari told The Telegraph.