"If they contested on SIR issue, people would have taught them a lesson": JD(U)'s Sanjay Kumar Jha slams Rahul Gandhi

Patna (Bihar) [India], November 8 (ANI): Janata Dal (United) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha on Saturday took a swipe at Leader of Opposition (LoP) Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, saying that he was “nowhere to be found” amid the ongoing assembly elections in Bihar.

In an interview with ANI, Jha implied that Rahul Gandhi’s 16-day-long ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ failed to become an election issue. Challenging Gandhi, he said that people would have taught them (Congress) a lesson if they had contested the 2025 Bihar assembly polls on the issue of ‘Vote Chori’ and Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

He (Rahul Gandhi) had taken out his 16-day yatra against ‘Vote Chori’ from here only. He is nowhere to be found now. He is not even talking about SIR. He should have contested the elections on the issue of Vote Chori. People would have taught them a lesson,” Jha said.

On being asked whether Gen Z believes in the allegations of Vote Chori levelled by Rahul Gandhi, the Rajya Sabha MP said, “You will see the results (to the assembly elections). People from Bihar have seen the track record of the current government.”

Reacting to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s recent remarks alleging land allotment to Adani groups, Jha dismissed the remarks and said that there was a response to “such logic”. “Factories are established by the Japanese, (south) Koreans. There’s no response to such logic,” he added.

Taking a dig at the opposition Mahagathabdhan over promises made by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, Jha claimed that they want to come to power “by hook or by crook”.

“They just want to come to power, by hook or crook. All these (promises) show desperation to come to power. This is the reality. The public also understands this,” he added.

Accusing the opposition parties that claim to be socialist of ‘dynastic politics’, Jha said, “JD(U) remains the only party that focuses on socialism. Rest all parties, which were socialists, are now family parties.”

Expressing confidence that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will sweep the assembly polls, the JD(U) MP said that there is no “Plan B” since people have been responding positively.

"There isn't a Plan B. Nitish Kumar knows what the result will be. Because when you go among the people, you see their response. Will anyone go with the lantern (RJD)? Here, every home has 24-hour electricity. Tejashwi Yadav always appears confident,” Jha said.

He further stated that the elections appear to be “one-sided”, with Nitish Kumar forming the government in Bihar.

"After we took feedback or were observing the mood during the campaigning, the election seemed to be a completely one-sided election. The reason is that the narrative of development that was created throughout the election and the number of women voters who cast their votes, that is, the hope they have regarding the work that has been done. Nitish Kumar has been the CM for 20 years... The NDA was completely integrated, and the opposition was completely scattered till the end... Even when the NDA was not with them, Nitish Kumar formed the government,” Jha said. (ANI)