Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asserted that the corrupt will have to go to jail and that he will not be deterred by threats, RJD president Lalu Prasads eldest daughter Misa Bharti tried to change the political narrative by asserting that PM Modi and other BJP leaders would be put in jail, if the opposition INDIA bloc formed a government at the Centre.
Addressing a rally in Rajasthan's Karauli, PM Modi had hit out at the previous Congress-led state government over exam paper leaks a thriving racket in the Ashok Geholt dispensation contending that the party is steeped in corruption and it had looted even the jobless youth.
On one hand, there is Modi, who says remove corruption; on the other hand, there are those who say save the corrupt. All these people, who have set out to save the corrupt, listen carefully: No matter how many threats you make, they will have to go to jail. This is Modi's guarantee," the prime minister said.
Lalus daughter Misa made it clear at the outset that her angst stems from allegations against her family, that they have taken land plots and in turn provided jobs to the unemployed. Going off the tangent, possibly to put the ruling party on defensive, she declared, Allegations are made against our family that we have taken land plots in lieu of jobs. I want to ask the Prime Minister about ED-CBI raids, which were conducted to force companies to purchase electoral bonds.
Even the Supreme Court is asking, why the PM is silent on election bonds? If INDIA forms a government at the Centre, Modi and other BJP leaders will be put in jail. Misa's brother and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, sensing that he wasstepping into a political minefield, avoided giving a direct reply and merely stated, Let us talk about issues, as there is no meaning in discussing who said what. Work should be done. When the Prime Minister visits Bihar, he should tell what he will do for the state for the next five years.
Hitting back at Misa for her unsavoury remarks against the PM, deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha said that people would know who would go to jail after the polls were over. Lalus family used to stay in a peons quarters and now owns a farmhouse and a shopping mall. They should explain how they have created such huge property, he added.
On the other hand, BJPs in charge of Bihar and party general secretary Vinod Tawde asserted that Bhartis statement was reflective of the new low in Bihar political discourse. Instead of speaking on issues, the (opposition) leaders are making objectionable remarks against the PM and even talking about putting him in jail, he added.
Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad cautioned Misa against making irresponsible and shameful statements and also reminded her of corruption cases in which she and her family members were accused. Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan alleged that Misas comment against the PM reeked of the RJDs vendetta politics. It is an open secret that RJD leaders are involved in corruption, he charged.
