Moments after the Election Commission announced the Bihar assembly election schedule, Shiv Sena Member of the Parliament (MP) Sanjay Raut wondered whether the time was good to hold the polls there especially amidst the COVID-19 cases. "Is the coronavirus pandemic over now? Is the situation right for elections?" asked Raut.
He said, while the pandemic has led to an unprecedented situation, was it appropriate to hold elections in Bihar. “People need help. They don't just want to get black ink on their hands. Will online elections maintain secrecy? All political parties need to think about this,” appealed Raut.
Raut claimed that Sushant Singh Rajput’s death will be the major plank as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (United) cannot reach out to the voters on the issue of development. “The passage of agriculture and labour bills will not have any impact on Bihar elections, as voting there will take place entirely on caste and religion. Poverty is also not an issue there either. There is a latent anger about the government there. It is to see how the opposition poses a formidable challenge to the BJP-JD(U) combination,” he viewed.
Raut said the Shiv Sena will soon decide contesting Bihar elections.
“The BJP-JD(U) government there does not have any issues related to development or governance to speak about. What happened to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in Singh’s case? Bihar director general of police (DGP) has now resigned and will be contesting the assembly polls," said the Shiv Sena MP.
Raut reminded that the Nitish Kumar-led JD (U) had already displayed Sushant Singh Rajput’s posters. The script is already ready. “BJP and JD(U) together politicised the SSR death case. The issues of Mumbai have been forcefully projected,” he noted.
“What happened to the SSR death case?” asked Raut. He further observed that the investigation into the case will not go ahead now. Now, CBI is nowhere to be seen. Now, the people of Mumbai and Maharashtra will have to ask the Bihar police and the rulers there, what happened to the case?”
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena legislator Pratap Sarnaik, in a tweet, said, “The results of the Bihar elections, the outcome of the Sushant Singh Rajput case and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) report will be released on November 10 (on a day the counting of votes in Bihar is slated). There is also the election in America and the vaccine for COVID-19. However, then, the love for Mumbai will blossom. Until then, individuals and actors who will face allegations should be prepared to face the investigation.”
