On 4th November, Nitish Kumar attended an election rally at Kochadhaman in Kishanganj district, Bihar. He was seeking votes for sitting MLA Mujahid Alam during the ongoing assembly elections. During his address, Nitish made a statement that got misinterpreted by the media. Several news agencies, including India Today, News18, and Zee News among several others, reported that Nitish Kumar had slammed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his comment on illegal intruders.
Nitish’s comment was in context of Mujahid Alam’s statement
The comment that Nitish Kumar made was in the context of what sitting MLA of Kochadhaman, Mujahid Alam, said, “Lekin yeh vipakshi partiyan aapko vikas ki baat nahi kar rahe hain. Yeh aapke beech mein keh rahe hain ke Mujahid master ko vote doge to yahan NRC laagu ho jayega. Master Mujahid ko vote doge to Musalmano ko yahan se bhaga diya jayega. (But these opposition parties do not talk about the progress. They are spreading the rumors that if you vote for Mujahid Master, then the government will impose NRC in the region. If you vote for Master Mujahid, Muslims will be thrown out of the state.)”
He further added, “Hamare neta Nitish Kumar 15 saal se Bihar ke 12 crore aawam ko apna pariwar maan kar uske chehre pe muskaan laane ka kaam kar raha hai. In 15 saalon mein aap apne dil pe haath rakh ke jitna aman chain such shanti Bihar ke musalmano ko jo yahan par reh rahe hain, poore Hindustan mein uski misaal kahin nahi milegi. (Our leader Nitish Kumar considers 12 crore people of Bihar his family members. You know the Muslims living in Bihar for the last fifteen years are living peacefully without any problem. Their condition has become a benchmark for the rest of the country.)”
He mentioned AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi and said, “Itna kya darr Mujahid se AIMIM ko? Aaj yeh NRC ki baat kar rahe hain. Kis tarah se logon ko gumrah kar rahe hain. (Why is AIMIM scared of Mujahid Master? Today they are talking about NRC. They are misleading people.)”
Nitish Kumar’s statement
During his speech, Nitish Kumar talked about the rumors that Muslims will be thrown out of Bihar if Mujahid Master wins again. He said, “Aur yeh kaun dushprachar karta rehta hai faltu baat karta rehta hai. Yahan se kaun kisko desh se bahar karega? Aisa is desh mein kisi mein dam nahi hai ke hamare logon ko… sab Hindustan ke hain, sab Bharat ke hain. Kaun kisko bahar karega. Yeh sab kaisi baat karte rehte hain yun hi. (Who is spreading this propaganda and talking nonsense? Who will throw out whom from the country? No one has the guts to touch the people of India. Everyone is from India. Who will throw whom out? Who talks like that?)”
सब को साथ ले कर चलना ही हमारा धर्म है। यही हमारी संस्कृति है। सब साथ चलेंगे तो बिहार आगे बढ़ेगा। pic.twitter.com/uEfnVJPiay
— Nitish Kumar (@NitishKumar) November 4, 2020
He further added, ”Hum to jab se aapne mauka diya hai bataiye, samaj mein prem ka, bhaichare ka, sadbhavna ka mahaul paida kiya hai, sabki ek jut karne ki humne koshish ki hai. Kuch log chahte hain samaaj mein jhagda chalta rahe, koi kaam karne ki zaroorat nahi hai. Aur hum to kaam karte rehte hain aur hamara maksad yehi hai ke jab sab log prem se, bhaichare se sadbhavna ke saath raheinge tabhi samaaj aage badega log aage badeinge tarakki karainge. (You gave us a chance, and we have worked on spreading love, brotherhood, and goodwill in society. We have worked on bringing everyone together. Some people want to cause problems in society to sit and relax without doing any work. We are here to work, and we aim to live with love, brotherhood, and goodwill. Only then can society progress.)”
Yogi Adityanath talked about infiltrators and not the residents of India
During his visit to Katihar on 4th November, Yogi Adityanath talked about how the Nitish-led Bihar government and Central government has worked for the progress of the poor people of Bihar. He also spoke about how CAA will help the minorities from neighboring countries of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
He said, “Aapne dekha hoga Bharat mein bhi alpsankhyak samuday hai, vishesh adhikaron ke saath yahan rehta hai. Use koi pareshani nahi. Lekin Pakistan, Afghanistan aur Bangladesh mein rehne wale alpsankhyak Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Baoudh… in sab ke saath ka atyachaar hota hai kisi se chupa hua nahi hai. (There are minorities in India who live with special privileges. They are not facing any problems. However, in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, the minorities of Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddist communities face atrocities, and it is not hidden from anyone.)”
“Nagrikta Sanshodhan Kanoon ke madhyam se unki suraksha ki guarantee dene ka karya pradhanmantri Modi ji ne kiya hai wahin Bharat sarkaar ne is baat ko bhi kaha hai ki agar koi ghuspaithiya Bharat ki suraksha par sendh lagane ka kuchit prayas kar raha hai use nikal bahar karne ka karya bhi kareinge. (With the help of the Citizen Amendment Act, PM Modi has guaranteed security for such minorities. Also, the government of India has promised that if any infiltrator tries to cause trouble in India, they will be thrown out),” he further added.
Misinterpretation by media
Both mainstream and vernacular misinterpreted Nitish Kumar’s speech and connected it with Yogi Adityanath’s statement. In reality, he was talking in the context of what Mujahid Alam had said earlier during the same rally in Kishanganj.
Therefore, the claim made by news agencies such as NDTV, The Hindu, Deccan Herald, The Week, Navbharat Times, India Today, Zee News, Sanmarg, Live Hindustan, Amar Ujala, News 18 that Nitish Kumar slammed Yodi Adityanath over the CAA and NRC is fake. The media houses combined two unrelated comments to invent a rift in the NDA.
Bihar Elections 2020
Voting for the last phase of Bihar assembly elections 2020 will be held on 7th November. Elections results will be announced on 10th November.
