Even as the ruling JD(U) and other parties in Bihar observed dalit and socialist icon Karpoori Thakur’s birth anniversary on Monday, a dharna by Rajya Sabha member and senior JD(U) leader Upendra Kushwaha against the state government and his party leadership stuck out like a sore thumb.
Mr Kushwaha, a former Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly who holds considerable influence on the state’s backward Koeri community, chose the 87th birth anniversary of the state’s first non-Congress chief minister to launch his veiled attacks on chief minister Nitish Kumar and the JD(U) leadership. Formerly a close confidante of Mr Kumar, Mr Kushwaha sat in the dharna along with his supporters demanding that Mr Kumar order a probe into his (Mr Kushwaha’s) assets. The MP said he felt “extremely hurt” after some JD(U) leaders alleged he had amassed huge properties illegally. There has been no initiative by the government to investigate and assess the influential leader’s assets. Two JD(U) leaders had alleged earlier this month that Mr Kushwaha’s movable and immovable assets had risen by “369.89 per cent” between 2005 and 2010.
“I urge the chief minister to end my ongoing character assassination by some of my own party colleagues by ordering a probe into my assets, none of which were acquired illegally,” said Mr Kushwaha, a JD(U) national general secretary. Colourful posters with his photos and those of Mr Kumar and Karpoori Thakur were pasted on walls across Patna to announce the staging of the dharna.
Analysts said Kushwaha aimed at politically combating the allegations against him that seem to have been politically motivated. They also said the wily Koeri leader’s rebellion could snowball into a threat to Kumar’s leadership.
JD(U) sources said distances between Kushwaha and Kumar grew after the former described the government’s move to abolish legislators’ LAD funds as wrong.