RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Sunday accused chief minister Nitish Kumar of being aware of the Srijan fund transfer scam since 2013.
He slammed Nitish for encouraging financial irregularities and not taking any punitive action to stop swindling of government funds. Terming the Srijan scam the biggest swindling in Bihar, Lalu said day by day the amount of the scam is increasing manifold and soon it would touch the Rs 15,000-crore mark. Lalu called the chief minister a liar for saying that Nitish is the one who had exposed the scam.
"I heard him yesterday (Saturday) speaking in the open convention of his party that he revealed the scam after a cheque bounced. A person who has plenty of loopholes, fully corrupt and a sinner can speak like this. But there is a saying that you cannot hide anything. Rahim had once said khair, khoon, khaansi, khushi, baer, preeti, madya-paan, Rahiman daabe na dabe, jannat sakal jahaan (prosperity, death, cough, happiness, enmity and drinking cannot be hidden for long). The world knows now, you are free to say anything loudly," Lalu said.
Lalu called Nitish Palturum and deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi Salturam.
"Palturam Nitish and Salturam Sushil you do whatever you want to. You filed cases against my children. Whatever property we have, everything is in public domain. Nitish allowed government funds to be misused. As they love each other Nitish, along with Sushil Modi, allowed swindling of government funds. The government funds have been looted in connivance with Nitish and Modi," Lalu said.
Lalu said: "I want to ask Palturam CM and Sushil Modi that on July 25, 2013, social activist and chartered accountant Sanjeet Kumar had written a detailed letter to the CM informing him about the swindling of government funds by the cooperative bank of Srijan. But Nitish did not take any action and in fact encouraged them to go on with the financial irregularities."
Lalu added that on September 9, 2013, the Reserve Bank of India had written a letter to the Bihar government to probe the financial irregularities in Srijan.
"The RBI had also asked the cooperative registrar to take action but the chief minister did not do anything and ignored the warning. In 2013, the then district magistrate of Bhagalpur had given an order to probe the Srijan case but so far the report has not come up in the public domain. Why did Nitish sit on the probe report? By sitting on the probe report, whom did Nitish benefit? Why did Nitish transfer then DM who had ordered the probe into Srijan? The scam was going on from 2006. Why even after 10 years, Nitish did not do anything? Nitish and Modi, who was the finance minister during that time, are directly responsible," Lalu alleged.
Lalu asked why the economic offences wing did not complete the investigation over former additional district magistrate of Bhagalpur Jay Shree Thakur, who was facing charges of accumulating disproportionate property.
"Bihar mein aaj kal do chizein famous hai. Ek Bihar ka litti-chokha aur doosra Nitish ka dhokha (These days two things are famous in Bihar. One litti-chokha and the other is Nitish's backstabbing)," Lalu said, adding: "Our new slogan for the rally would be Nitish-Sushil khajana chor, gaddi chodh gaddi chodh," Lalu said.
"As the general administration department comes under the chief minister, the posting of Thakur has always been in Bhagalpur and Banka. Can Nitish explain this?" Lalu asked.
Thakur had allegedly deposited a cheque of Rs 6.32 crore in the account of Srijan for clearance in July 2013. The state government on Friday terminated the service of Thakur.
