Patna, Sep 10 — Political debate over the demand to rename Bakhtiyarpur as 'Nitishpur' intensified on Thursday, with senior RJD MLA and Bihar Assembly Estimates Committee chairman Bhai Virendra taking a dig at the proposal and questioning its relevance when the state is grappling with issues such as unemployment and migration.
Reacting to the demand, Bhai Virendra said that political leaders should focus on pressing issues affecting the people rather than debating the renaming of places.
“Fine, why not rename India after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and rename every other place in the same manner? Just look at the situation we have reached,” he remarked.
Highlighting the issues of unemployment and migration, the RJD leader said people in Bihar were struggling to find jobs and were being forced to leave the state in search of employment, while political attention was being directed towards changing names of places.
Bihar Water Resources Minister and HAM(S) national president, Santosh Kumar Suman, son of Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, recently demanded that Bakhtiyarpur be renamed ‘Nitishpur’ in honour of former Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was born there.
Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary had also expressed his personal opinion in favour of changing Bakhtiyarpur’s name during a podcast.
However, there is currently no official proposal from the Bihar government to rename the town.
Bhai Virendra’s remarks have added a fresh political dimension to the debate, with the Opposition RJD questioning the priority being given to the issue.
Bhai Virendra also responded to Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary’s remarks on continuing Bihar’s prohibition policy, despite the state reportedly losing around Rs 20,000 crore in revenue because of the liquor ban.
The RJD MLA said he had supported prohibition but questioned its implementation in the state.
He sarcastically suggested that strict action should be taken against those violating the prohibition law.
“Khaki and Khadi are colluding to ruin and undermine the liquor ban law in Bihar,” Bhai Virendra alleged, using the terms commonly associated with the police and political classes.
His remarks come amid an ongoing political debate over the effectiveness and enforcement of Bihar’s prohibition policy.
Bhai Virendra also commented on Samrat Choudhary’s recent statement that he became Chief Minister through a decision of his party, the BJP, rather than through Nitish Kumar.
The RJD leader said the appointment of a Chief Minister is generally decided by the senior leadership of the concerned political party.
He added that there was nothing objectionable about Choudhary’s statement on the matter.