Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of Bihar, poked fun at Union Home Minister Amit Shah in advance of his planned trip to the region to attend a BJP event honoring the anniversary of Emperor Asoka’s birth.
Speaking at an event hosted by his JD(U) in honor of the famous Maurya emperor’s “jayanti,” Nitish urged the audience to be vigilant against efforts by the saffron party—which he omitted to specifically name—to “exploit” the historical figure for “political advantages.”
In an indirect allusion to Shah’s planned trip to Sasaram on April 2, Nitish remarked on Wednesday, “There are those who are attempting to stir friction in society for political advantages. Beware of them. In a few days, someone from Delhi will come and try to mislead you in the name of Samrat Asoka.
In addition, the CM said that “by using the name of Asoka, they would attempt to wean away (‘kabza karna chahte hain’) certain castes” since “these people had no part in the war for Independence.”
Nitish said, “I have never attempted to separate people based on caste.
Asoka was the great-grandson of Chandragupta, who established the Maurya dynasty and was raised by destitute shepherds. The Kushwaha caste, which is second in terms of population in Bihar after the Yadavs, claims to be a direct descendant of the Mauryas.
Political observers claim that the BJP is actively courting the caste group in Bihar, where it is trying to maintain its position in the state after the JD(Uwithdrawal )’s from the NDA.
Nitish pointed his gun at the Narendra Modi administration, saying, “I worked with the late Atal Bihari Vajpayee and remember his contributions even now. Not so far those who are currently at the helm. They are busy blowing their own trumpet.” The CM emphasized it was his initiative that resulted in Asoka’s birth anniversary celebrations and remembered the emperor with pride the contributions he made towards the spread of Buddhism while maintaining tolerance for diverse views.
The JD(U) leader said, “Mutual respect among all parts of society is the way ahead if we were to be real successors of the tradition of Asoka, whose grandeur had reached to distant locations like Taxila, which I had the good opportunity to see when I traveled Pakistan.