Bihar Roiled By Reports Of Attacks On Migrants In Tamil Nadu; Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav Denies Charges

PATNA: Bihar's choppy political waters were stirred on Thursday when Chief Minister Nitish Kumar asked officials to look into reports of attacks on migrant workers in Tamil Nadu while his deputy Tejashwi Yadav drew flak from the opposition BJP for visiting that state. Kumar wrote on Twitter that he learnt about attacks on Bihari labourers in Tamil Nadu from newspaper reports following which he instructed the chief secretary and the DGP to get in touch with their counterparts in the southern state and ensure safety and security of the migrant workers.

However, in a statement issued shortly afterwards, the police headquarters here said that the reports have been dubbed as "misleading" and "rumour" by the police in Tamil Nadu, which has also asserted that "all Hindi-speaking people" were safe in that state.

Tamil Nadu is ruled by the "Secular Progressive Alliance" which, like the ruling 'Mahagathbandhan' in Bihar, includes the Congress and the Left.

Tejashwi Yadav had visited Chennai on Wednesday to take part in a function organised on the birthday of Tamil Nadu CM and DMK president M K Stalin.

The BJP latched on to the opportunity to slam Yadav, who belongs to the RJD, for being indifferent to "Bihari self-respect".

बीजेपी, बीजेपी समर्थित मीडिया और इनके नेताओं का तथ्य और सत्य से कोई नाता नहीं है। इनकी झूठ फिर पकड़ी गयी।

भ्रम,झूठ,नफ़रत,हिंसा और अफवाह फैलाना ही भाजपाइयों का मुख्य धंधा और पूँजी है। किसी भी देशहितैषी व्यक्ति को समाज में द्वैष व भ्रम नहीं फैलाना चाहिए।pic.twitter.com/asmy0QFXoL — Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) March 2, 2023

"It is a pity that at a time when Biharis are being killed in Tamil Nadu, our deputy CM visits that state. Apparently he wants to honour the Tamil Nadu CM for unleashing violence on people from his own state," Bihar BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal told reporters here.

He also said that "the chief minister may have expressed his anguish over Twitter but he does not have the guts to question his own deputy for his conduct. We demand that the CM make public as to how many people from Bihar have been killed in the current spate of violence in Tamil Nadu".

Jaiswal further claimed that his party could not celebrate its victory in the northeastern states as "our heart bleeds over the plight of Bihari workers" in Tamil Nadu.

"बिहारी मजदूर पीटा रहा है मगर तेजस्वी जी के मुख से आवाज तक नहीं निकल रही"
माननीय नेता प्रतिपक्ष श्री @VijayKrSinhaBih pic.twitter.com/TLncDw5SQG — BJP Bihar (@BJP4Bihar) March 3, 2023

"It is a day when our party, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has registered handsome victories in north-eastern states like Tripura and Nagaland. But we find ourselves unable to celebrate," added Jaiswal, with a rhetorical flourish.

RJD MLA and chief spokesman Bhai Virendra reacted saying that his party does not attach importance to what the BJP says.

सुन लीजिए तेजस्वी जी तमिलनाडु से आए बिहारी क्या कह रहे हैं?@yadavtejashwi @RJDforIndia
#BihariMajdoor #Tamilnadu pic.twitter.com/cAC5TShKax — BJP Bihar (@BJP4Bihar) March 3, 2023

"Our government and our leader Tejashwi Yadav are sensitive towards the well being of the people of the state, including those who are eking out a living elsewhere. But we do not wish to attach much importance to what the BJP says. Their actions and deeds always tend to create fissures in the country. It is unsurprising, though, since they believe in an ideology which had never aligned itself with the national movement against the Britishers," the RJD leader added.