JD(U) would have been bundled up with 25 seats had it not given Rs 10,000 to women: Prashant Kishor
Patna (PTI): Jan Suraaj Party leader Prashant Kishor on Tuesday claimed that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) would have been bundled up with just 25 seats had his government not given Rs 10,000 to 60,000 beneficiaries in each constituency just before the assembly elections and promised Rs 2 lakh to 1.5 crore women across the state under self-employment initiatives.
Addressing a press conference here, Kishor said that his Jan Suraaj Party made an honest effort but failed to make a mark in the polls, and that he took full responsibility for the debacle.
Kishor also alleged that 'vote chori' (theft of votes) happens on a pan-India level and urged national opposition parties to hold deliberations on the matter and move the Supreme Court, if needed.
"We received a setback but we will rectify the mistakes, build ourselves and come back stronger... there is no going back for us," he asserted.
Attacking the NDA, he said he has failed to understand Bihar, unlike "Nitish Kumar and BJP leader Samrat Choudhary, who divided people on caste and religious lines and bought votes of people using money".
"To not get votes is not a crime... at least I have not indulged in corruption or divisive politics," he said.
Kishor said he would "definitely quit" politics if the NDA government fulfils its poll promise and gives Rs 2 lakh each to Rs 1.5 crore women under self-employment initiatives.
"People have given the mandate to NDA, now it's on the shoulders of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar to work on fulfilling their poll promises," he said.
"Self-employment is very important; they must give the Rs 2 lakh they promised. People who don't get the money in six months' time can come to Jan Suraaj, we will fight to ensure they get the amount," he said.
Kishor said as repentance, he would hold a fast for a day at Bitiharwa in West Champaran district on November 20, when the new NDA government is likely to take oath.
The NDA stormed to power in Bihar, winning 202 seats in the 243-member assembly, with BJP bagging 89, JD(U) 85, LJP(RV) 19, HAM 5 and RLM 4. Jan Suraaj Party failed to open its account in its maiden polls.
Under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rozgar Yojana, the Bihar government gave the first instalment of Rs 10,000 to beneficiaries and promised credit Rs 2 lakh more over subsequent instalments.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Confident about Cong winning bypolls in Karnataka, guarantee schemes helping us: Siddaramaiah
Davangere (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday expressed confidence that Congress candidates will win both the Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly bypolls in the state by a huge margin, as the government's five guarantee schemes will help the party.
Asserting that Karnataka's economy is in good shape, he accused the BJP of making negative statements for political gain.
The CM is in Davanagere to campaign for Congress candidate Samarth Mallikarjun, after campaigning for Umesh Meti in the Bagalkot segment for the last two days.
Bypolls for the Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly constituencies will be held on April 9. The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa, respectively.
"I'm confident that we will win in both constituencies by a big margin because of our government's good work. Our guarantee schemes ('Shakti', 'Gruha Lakshmi', 'Gruha Jyoti', 'Yuva Nidhi' and 'Anna Bhagya') are helping us. The BJP opposed guarantee schemes because they are programmes for the poor and they always oppose such initiatives," Siddaramaiah said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said over Rs 1.31 lakh crore has been spent on the guarantee schemes so far.
Noting that there are two types of economic theory -- trickle-down economics and universal basic income -- the CM said, "We believe in universal basic income theory because Basavanna, Ambedkar, Gandhiji, among others, wanted the focus to be on eliminating the sufferings of the last man."
"Through the guarantee schemes, the government is providing benefits to the poor in society -- irrespective of their language, caste or religion -- directly to their bank accounts, without any interference from middlemen," he said, as he rejected the BJP's allegations of corruption in guarantee schemes.
Pointing out that the BJP also claims the treasury is empty because of the guarantee schemes and that the state is being pushed into a debt trap, Siddaramaiah said the state's finances were better managed compared to the central government and most of the states where the saffron party is in power.
Karnataka is number two in the country in GST collection and attracting investments. "Then how is the BJP saying that Karnataka's economic situation is not in good shape? They are making such statements for the sake of politics...Karnataka's economic situation is strong. The BJP is lying," he said.
He also claimed that prices of petrol, diesel and other essentials cost less in Karnataka compared to other neighbouring states in South India.
Karnataka's economy is strong and stable, Siddaramaiah said, as he questioned the Modi government over the falling rupee against the dollar, 'Ache din,' doubling farmers' income, and generating 2 crore jobs every year.
The CM also assured of more funds for Davanagere's development saying, "This is bypolls, not general elections. We will give more funds. We are in power and Congress will be in power for two years."
