NEW DELHI: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, facing a “boycott” by Muslim groups for supporting the central government’s Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was targeted in a poster put up outside the residence of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and Bihar’s former chief minister, Rabri Devi.
The poster, installed by RJD’s Sanju Kohli, accused the Janata Dal (United) boss of “cheating” the Muslim community on both Waqf and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
“Tum toh dhokhebaaz ho, vada karke… (You fool people. You make promises and…),” it read, borrowing the lines of a song from the 1996 Bollywood film ‘Saajan Chale Sasural.’
The poster also accused Kumar of taking Muslims’ votes but not supporting them.
The JD(U) is a constituent of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the country’s governing coalition. The NDA governs Bihar as well.
The fresh poster comes two days after the same RJD leader, in another poster outside Rabri Devi’s residence, targeted Kumar for not standing in attention while the national anthem was going on.
In a video which went viral, the Bihar CM was seen talking and making gestures while the anthem was being played at an event in state capital Patna.
Bihar is scheduled to hold assembly polls later in the year. The election will be a straight contest between the NDA and the RJD-led opposition Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance).