New Delhi: The Sunday Guardian spoke to Bhupender Yadav, who is National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rajya Sabha member. Yadav, who is in charge of Bihar, spoke on the Bihar elections, Sushant Singh Rajput, Nitish Kumar and on the second generation of BJP leaders.
Q: It is the prerogative of the Election Commission to decide on when to hold any election. However, in Bihar, your alliance partner LJP’s Chirag Paswan has asked for a postponement of the Assembly elections, JDU’s K.C. Tyagi, on the other hand, has said that the elections will be held as per schedule, a view that has been echoed by Deputy Chief Minister and your party’s face in Bihar, Sushil Modi, as well. Do you, as someone who has recently spent a lot of time in the state, believe that elections can be held as per schedule? Especially when one considers the rising cases of Covid-19 and the deteriorating flood situation (close to 75 lakh people across 16 districts have been affected) in the state?
A: In a democracy, it is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that elections are free, fair and timely. Timely elections are a must to ensure democracy is strengthened. The Election Commission holds discussions to ensure a smooth functioning of processes. In the case of Bihar elections also the EC invited all parties for discussions. I don’t remember any major problem with the dates. Opposition parties may now be rattled sensing a defeat.
The poll panel also asked us for suggestions and we conveyed our views. The BJP is in favour of holding timely elections. Elections will be held following all social distancing norms laid out by the Central government. The Election Commission of India has an excellent track record of holding elections following laid down procedures. There is no question of public health being compromised.
Q: How do you see the way Nitish Kumar government has handled/is handling the Covid-19 crisis in the state? The three-member Central team that went to Patna gave very negative observations, which was also evident from the scores of videos showing medical apathy in government and private hospitals of the state and of patients dying without care.
A: I think Nitish Kumar’s handling of the pandemic has been efficient. The fatality rate for Covid positive patients in the state is 0.51% in comparison to the national average of 2%. The recovery rate is close to 67%. The state is conducting rigorous testing, tracing and treatment. Close to 1.20 lakh tests are being conducted every single day now. Both the Central and State governments are working in tandem to fight corona in Bihar. The Central government has provided Bihar with 470 ventilators of the 520 the state procured since the outbreak. The Centre has also provided Bihar with 750 oxygen concentrators and the state has procured another 4,500.
Four hospitals in the state are functioning fully as Covid dedicated hospitals. In other hospitals, about 100 beds each have been earmarked for Covid patients. In the overall India tally, Bihar is at No. 8 in terms of positive cases. The recovery rate is also proof that the fight against coronavirus is being won in Bihar.
Q: Do you believe that the situation could have been handled in a better way? It is a matter of record that the CM did not leave his residence for more than three months. The Health Minister too did not venture out for three months, which aggravated the ground situation?
A: In the first three months, everyone was supposed to work from where they were. Meetings were held virtually. The CM’s residence was where all the big decisions were being taken and from where the fight against Covid-19 was being monitored in Bihar. When the lockdown was lifted everyone went where it was necessary to go.
Health Minister Mangal Pandey has been personally visiting hospital wards and ensuring all patients are treated well. The recovery rate and the fatality rate for patients in Bihar are testimony to the good work being done in the state.
It is ironic that people complaining about the absence of CM and Health Minister were missing from the state when the state was in crisis. It is natural they could not see the good work being done in the state.
Q: In the first few days of the national lockdown, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar announced publicly that neither was he going to allow the returning Bihari migrants enter the state nor would he ply the buses to ferry them. Was that, in your view, a prudent decision? Do you agree with this method of tackling migrants or you believe the method adopted by UP CM Yogi Adityanath was more effective?
A: It is wrong to say that Nitish Kumar made any such statements. There was a national lockdown in place. The lockdown was necessary to save as many lives as possible and it has shown results.
The Bihar government immediately ordered that Rs 1,000 be transferred to the individual bank accounts of all migrants stuck in other states. About 1,500 trains of the nearly 5,000 Shramik trains were destined for Bihar once relaxations were allowed. Over 30 lakh migrants returned to Bihar on those trains.
The government had arranged quarantine centres for the returning workers at the block level.
Every state has handled the crisis in its own way. All states have done a great job. This is no contest where we have to compare a state with another state. India is together in this fight.
Q: The BJP’s move to start a virtual meet of party workers and leaders to prepare for the elections led to scores of party leaders, including the state president, getting infected with Covid-19. In hindsight, do you feel that starting the election campaign, even as the state was facing Covid-19, should have been avoided?
A: Communication between leaders and people is the foundation of a healthy democracy. It is unfortunate that people, including our own leaders, got the infection. I don’t know what is the basis of saying they got it because of virtual rallies. Even our detractors who were quick to criticise us for our virtual rallies are now treading the same path.
Leaders must talk to their people, especially in times of crises.
Q: I have spoken to multiple Bihar based party leaders and they are of the belief that there is resentment among the voters due to the way the Covid-19 situation and the flood have been handled by the state administration. This was also seen recently when one of your party MPs, Janardhan Singriwal, was man-handled by victims who were staying at relief camps in Chhapra. How would you respond to this?
A: You have spoken to Bihar-based leaders who sit in our opposition. They will naturally say that people are not happy with the NDA. I am not surprised.
I have been to Bihar and on the ground people are happy with the work the government has done for them. Even the migrants who have returned have found work under MGNREGA.
The issues that you mention could be regional in nature and do not in any way reflect the overall mood in the state.
Q: The party has already announced that the elections will be contested under the leadership of CM Nitish Kumar. What explains the BJP’s reluctance to project a CM face from its own family? Is BJP lacking a CM face in the state?
A: The decision to project Nitish Kumar as the CM face is the unanimous decision of NDA. The BJP believes in following coalition dharma. We have full faith in Nitish Kumar’s abilities.
Q: The lack of second generation leaders in Bihar is not something that is a secret anymore. Why is the BJP in Bihar unable to move beyond senior leaders like Sushil Modi?
A: BJP is a democratic organisational party. The party has a system of cultivating young leaders. The present Bihar party chief, Sanjay Jaiswal, former state chiefs Nityanand Rai, Mangal Pandey, along with many other young leaders are all part of our second rung. They have been given important positions in state politics.
The average age of BJP MPs is 50-55 years.
BJP is the only party which has introduced a system where leaders above 75 years do not participate in electoral contests.
We have no dearth of second rung leaders.
Q: The JDU has stated on record that it will contest the maximum number of seats in the forthcoming elections. Has a seat-sharing formula been arrived at? Is the BJP mentally prepared to contest on fewer seats than the JDU?
A: A seat-sharing formula is under work. It will be arrived at with everyone’s consent. NDA is working in Bihar as a united team and is committed to working out the seat-sharing deal that is in everyone’s interest.
We will look at increasing our winnability.
Q: Is the death of Sushant Singh Rajput an election issue for Bihar BJP?
A: The death of a young actor from Bihar is an emotional issue for crores of people of the state. He was seen as an icon by many in the state. Sushant’s demise left people shocked and saddened.
Added to this was a botched investigation by the Maharashtra government, which has looked motivated too. Bihari babu Shatrughan Sinha’s silence on the issue is also baffling. He is part of the Congress and Congress is part of the Maharashtra government. What stops him from raising questions on the numerous loopholes in the probe?
As for the Bihar government, it is not an election issue. We would have demanded a fair probe even if no election was approaching. This is only a question of justice.
Q: Will the BJP give a ticket to the present Bihar DGP, Gupteshwar Pandey?
A: I don’t know where that question is coming from. He is a serving officer and to my knowledge has not said anything about joining any political party.
I can’t speculate on issues that have no basis on the ground.
Q: Why should the voters of Bihar vote for the BJP? Does the BJP believe that the NDA government has carried out enough developmental activity in the state even as it is at the bottom of sustainable development goals index and health index, criterion that have been formulated by Niti Aayog?
A: The BJP fights elections only and only on the basis of its report cards. In Bihar, the NDA has a praiseworthy track record.
From sadak, bijli and paani to prohibition, the government has delivered on all promises it made.
In the fields of education, health, welfare and development of backward and deprived classes, the government has done very good work.
It has also handled the pandemic well in the face of which the most modern nations succumbed.
We have big plans for development in the state. We will implement the plans once we are back in power.