BJP gets another opportunity to corner Nitish govt

Patna,(BiharTimes): As the blasts in Mahabodhi Temple and its vicinity in Bodh Gaya early on Sunday morning took place only three weeks after the sacking of all the 11 BJP ministers, the saffron party is out to make political capital out of it.

Incidentally, the blasts took place when the flow of tourists is not much. Domestic and international tourists, including Dalai Lama, and other VIPs usually come here during the winter months between November and January.

BJP leaders right from national spokesman Prakash Javadekar to former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi and his former colleague and noted critic of the Bihar chief minister, Giriraj Singh, left no opportunity to flay the state government for not doing enough though IB inputs were very much available with it.

They also came down heavily on the Centre for being soft towards terrorists and took a potshot at the growing proximity between the Congress and Janata Dal (United).

Chief minister Nitish Kumar, on the other hand, while strongly condemning the incident, denied that there was security failure. He assured full protection to the temple premises and all other places.
Like the chief minister, his former deputy Sushil Kumar Modi rushed to the spot. He minced no words to criticize the Nitish Kumar government.

He said that Nitish Kumar is more interested in saving his minority government and has no time for any other work in the state. Modi gave similar statement when police firing took place in Bagaha on June 24 last, in which half a dozen tribals were killed.

However, when the media asked as to what was he doing as the deputy chief minister when the IB inputs came, Modi replied that the home department was with the chief minister himself.

The timing of the blast is really significant. Though it took place in the lean season politically it came soon after the split in the NDA and a few hours after the teleconferencing of the BJP’s Campaign Committee chairman, Narendra Modi, with the party leaders and workers in Bihar. The party rank and file were already fired up after the last evening interaction with what they call their prime ministerial candidate. They were not going to miss any opportunity to corner Nitish Kumar, though in the process they are themselves in the dock and have to answer several uncomfortable questions.