Ranchi, August 22: Former Jharkhand minister and JD(U) MLA Saryu Roy on Friday claimed that the large crowds at Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Voter Adhikaar Yatra’ in Bihar are not a sign of real public anger against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, but gatherings arranged by the INDIA bloc in its stronghold areas.
Speaking to reporters here on Friday, Roy said the yatra was deliberately passing through Muslim and Yadav-dominated regions, which are considered traditional strongholds of the RJD and the INDIA bloc. “Workers from at least 10 nearby districts are being mobilized to attend Rahul Gandhi’s events. The crowds being seen are not an indication of anti-Nitish Kumar sentiment, but rather a managed show of strength in favorable constituencies,” the Jamshedpur West MLA remarked.
Roy further argued that the Congress leader was carefully choosing areas where alliance supporters are concentrated. “Wherever Rahul Gandhi is going, those are Muslim-Yadav belts. Naturally, the INDIA bloc already enjoys majority support there, so the crowds are not surprising,” he said.
Meanwhile, Roy also backed the 130th Constitutional Amendment. Under this, the Prime Minister, Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and state or UT ministers will lose their posts if they stay in jail for 30 straight days in a case that carries at least five years’ punishment. Supporters of the amendment say it will stop leaders facing serious criminal charges from running governments while being in jail.
“If they do not step down, they should be removed from office. Running a government from behind bars is not appropriate,” he asserted.
