- AIMIM chief Owaisi rejects BJP's claim that Opposition uses infiltrators as vote bank in Bihar
- Owaisi accuses NDA of defaming Muslims after ignoring their progress in Seemanchal region
- He blames PM Modi and Nitish Kumar for failing to stop infiltrators in Bihar
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has snubbed the BJP's charge that the Opposition uses infiltrators as a vote bank, accusing the NDA combine in Bihar of defaming Muslims after ignoring their progress. Such an illegal migration charge could still be accepted if there had been a gold rush, he argued during an exclusive interview with NDTV's Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal in Kishanganj days ahead of the second phase of voting for the Bihar assembly elections 2025.
"Has there been a gold rush here? I would have understood that people are flocking to the state if oil reserves were discovered. Young Indians migrate across the country, but instead of stopping them, you give them a bad name by calling them infiltrators. The Muslims in Seemanchal did not move to Bangladesh during Partition and chose India as their country," said the 56-year-old MP from Hyderabad.
Even if infiltrators are present, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar should be blamed, he argued, pointing out that the two allies have been in power at the centre and in Bihar for many years.
"The chief minister is yours, Nitish Kumar; the Union home minister is yours, Amit Shah; the prime minister is Narendra Modi. How are infiltrators coming in under your watch? If there are infiltrators, it means you have failed. You have the BSF and Seema Suraksha Bal. You criticise the state government, but even that's yours (in Bihar)," said Owaisi.
Rebuffing the infiltrator charge, he claimed the BJP can't even name 10 infiltrators in Bihar. "Since you have not done anything for the community (Muslims) living here in large numbers and discriminated against them, you are now defaming them."
In the 2020 Bihar elections, Owaisi's party had pulled off a stunner by winning five seats in the Seemanchal region that account for a big chunk of the state's 17% Muslim population. Four of them had later switched to Rashtriya Janata Dal.
The government has done nothing for Seemanchal, and it remains the most backward region in Bihar, Owaisi alleged during the interview. "The Prime Minister says he built AIIMS and IITs in Patna, Darbhanga, and Bhagalpur, but he couldn't say what he did in Araria. From that perspective, nothing has changed in Seemanchal...when the people here see what's happening in Rajgir, Patna, and Bodh Gaya, but that's not happening here, nearly a crore of young people disappear."
Speaking on Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi's claim of vote theft, he said voter lists need multiple scans before the elections, suggesting there could be illegalities.
"We have an election cell that checks voter lists thrice, before and after name additions and during elections. Remember, you are contesting against the BJP. They can make you disappear even if you blink," he added.
