New Delhi, May 16: Ram Vilas Paswan today demanded the imposition of President's rule in Bihar, stressing there was no way out to save the state from the spate of murders, rapes and lawlessness.
"There is breakdown of the constitutional machinery. Now, there is no way out but to impose President's rule. Murders, rapes and dacoities will continue to take place till President's rule is imposed," he said, referring to the killing of a journalist in Siwan.
The LJP chief said he had already written a letter to the President, after the killing of Aditya Sachdeva, and demanded central rule in Bihar. He alleged breakdown of constitutional machinery in the state and said incidents of murder, rape and dacoities had crossed all records in the six months of the Nitish Kumar government's third tenure.
The minister slammed Nitish and said he had lost control of governance and was only obsessed with prohibition.
"There is lawlessness in the state and he (Nitish) is going around giving sermons against alcohol. He has lost the authority to rule. He should quit if he cannot govern," Paswan said, presenting a list of murders under the regime.
Paswan said most incidents were being carried out with the patronage of members from the ruling parties and alleged it was beyond Nitish's capability to control them.
Paswan demanded that the killing of the youth in Gaya be referred to the CBI. He said the state police were deliberately leaving loopholes in the Gaya case to save his party people involved in the case.
Taking a dig at Nitish over prohibition, the LJP chief charged the chief minister of double standards. Paswan held Nitish responsible for addicting the youth of Bihar to alcohol by opening liquor shops in interior villages during his earlier stint.
" Pehle sabko botal pakda diya aura ab Gandhi aur Vinoba Bhave ban-ne chale hai (First he introduced the bottle to everyone and now he wants to be a Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave)," Paswan said.
The Union minister demanded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh and a government job to each of the families in both the Gaya and Siwan cases and declared that his party would launch a movement against the state government.
Law & order jibe
A day after Grand Alliance leaders attacked journalists for targeting Bihar and said other states aren't particularly models of mangal raj (good governance), the state BJP countered saying no other state sees institutionalised crime.
"Grand Alliance leaders and chief minister Nitish Kumar keep comparing Bihar's crime graph with other states, but do you see ruling party leaders involved in criminal activities in other states too," BJP national spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain asked, while attacking the state government.
Shahnawaz, who reached Patna today after meeting family members of Aditya Sachdeva in Gaya and journalist Rajdev Rajan in Siwan, said ruling party leaders were directly or indirectly involved in both incidents.
Suspended JDU MLC Manorama Devi's son Rocky Yadav has been arrested in the Aditya road rage case, while alleged associates of jailed RJD leader and former MP Mohammad Shahabuddin have been arrested in the Siwan case.
Taking a jibe at Nitish's seven resolves, Shahnawaz said: "Chief minister's saat nischay and liquor prohibition will be of no use if he fails to check the crime graph."
ADDITIONL REPORTING BY ROSHAN KUMAR IN PATNA
