Patna: BJP on Tuesday supported the demand of its coalition partner JD(U) to grant special category status to Bihar for its rapid economic development.
"BJP is part of the resolution passed by all parties in the state assembly and council demanding the Centre to provide special status to Bihar," Deputy Chief Minister and senior state BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters here.
The `Adhikar rally` on November 4 at which Chief Minister Nitish Kumar gave a call for giving special status to Bihar was organised by his party JD(U), and BJP was not invited.
Asked to comment on the success of the rally, Modi said "Every party has right to organise political programmes and I do not wish to comment on programme of the coalition partner."
He said "The BJP will be organising a `Hunkar rally` on April 15 next year in Patna on various issues including the demand for the special status for the state."
Dismissing RJD President Lalu Prasad`s adverse comments on the rally, Modi said, "So far he has failed to make any substantial charge against the NDA government hence people are not hearing him seriously."
Modi, who is also state`s finance minister, accused neighbouring Jharkhand government of adopting delaying tactics on payment of pension and other benefits to state government employees who had retired before bifurcation of Bihar into a separate state of Jharkhand.
Modi said all these issues were sorted out and a resolution was passed for division of Bihar into Jharkhand in the Bihar assembly in 2000 in which there were ministers and legislators from the regions which have gone to Jharkhand, but they did not raised the issues then and were now going to the apex court when the Centre has asked them to pay money to Bihar.
When asked that Jharkhand had a BJP government then why he did not talk to Chief Minister Arjun Munda, Modi said it was an issue concerning a state and not a party.
PTI
