Patna: A key aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday found himself in a tight spot over a remark he made recently, blaming a powerful upper caste for the JD(U)'s loss in a seat in the Lok Sabha polls.
Ashok Choudhary, one of the most influential ministers in the state cabinet, had made the utterances about ‘Bhumihars’ in Jehanabad district, which he visited on Thursday for a party function.
A video clip of his speech has gone viral in which Choudhary can be heard ruing that "just because we fielded a candidate from an extremely backward caste", the ‘Bhumihars’ did not support the JD(U) candidate.
The remark was in the context of former MP Chandeshwar Prasad Chandrawanshi, who failed to retain his seat in the elections, losing to the rival RJD nominee by a margin of over one lakh votes.
The remark drew flak from ally BJP, with which ‘Bhumihars’ have been aligned for decades, the Congress which was their party of choice till the Mandal wave of 1990s, as also the RJD that has of late been trying to win over a section of the social group to widen its own base.
Deputy Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha said, "Bhumihars are not just a caste. They represent a culture that is rooted to the ground. No well wisher of the society would make an adverse remark about the community.” "Ashok Choudhary, who was a state president of our party till a few years ago, should be ashamed of making such a divisive statement. It is also a reflection on the culture of the JD(U), which is in power in Bihar and a partner in the ruling dispensation at the Centre,” said Congress MLA Ajeet Sharma.
Leader of the Opposition in state assembly Tejashwi Yadav, who belongs to the RJD, said "it is in the character of Nitish Kumar to take it out on those whom he perceives as not in support of the JD(U)".
"A minister is lashing out at ‘Bhumihars’. Earlier, an MP had fulminated against Kushwahas, Muslims and Yadavs", said the former Bihar deputy CM, in an indirect reference to a similar controversy triggered a few months ago by Devesh Chandra Thakur, who represents the Sitamarhi Lok Sabha seat.
Meanwhile, MLC and JD(U) spokesman Neeraj Kumar, himself a ‘Bhumihar’, angrily reminded Choudhary that he had played "no role in building the JD(U)".
Another senior minister Shravan Kumar said the remark must be treated as having been made "in personal capacity", and underscored "Nitish Kumar cares for all, without any discrimination on the basis of caste".
Choudhary, on his part, voiced bewilderment over the row stirred up by "my expression of anguish over some people in the JD(U) not working for the party just because the candidate does not happen to be from their own caste".
"How can I ever speak ill of the ‘Bhumihars’? My son-in-law is from that caste,” said Choudhary, referring to his daughter Shambhavi, the sitting MP from Samastipur, who is married to Sayan Kunal, the son of IPS officer-turned-religious leader Acharya Kishor Kunal.