New Delhi: Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Wednesday (August 17, 2022) alleged that Bihar's new law minister Kartikeya Singh has a pending arrest warrant against him in a kidnapping case. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, however, said that he has "no information" about this. Demanding that Kartikey Singh should be "immediately dismissed", Modi, a former Bihar Deputy CM, asked Nitish if he is trying to take the state "back to Lalu Prasad Yadav's times". He said that Singh was accused in a 2014 kidnapping case, along with 16 others, including former Mokama MLA Anant Singh.


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According to reports, Kartikeya Singh, an RJD MLA, was supposed to surrender in Danapur court on August 16, but, instead, he showed up at the Raj Bhavan to take oath as a minister.


"If Kartikeya Singh had a warrant against him, he should have surrendered. But he has taken oath as Law minister. I ask Nitish, is he trying to take Bihar back to Lalu's times? Kartikey Singh should be immediately dismissed," Modi, Bihar's former deputy CM, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.


Rejecting BJP's allegations, a senior RJD leader maintained that Singh has been granted interim protection till September 1 by the court.


When asked about Kartikeya Singh's outstanding arrest warrant, Nitish Kumar told media reporters that he "does not know" and that he has "no information" about this.



Singh, an RJD MLA, in Patna's Bihta police station in 2014. He reportedly is accused of conspiracy to kidnap a builder with the intent to murder. 


Earlier on Tuesday, Sushil Kumar Modi had hit out at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar after he expanded his cabinet by inducting 31 new ministers, including a huge contingent of 16 from key ally RJD. Modi said that "two communities" had grabbed "more than 33 per cent" of berths in the 33-strong cabinet that includes the Chief Minister and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav who has returned as his deputy.


Modi's allusion was to Yadavs and Muslims, largely seen as loyal to the RJD. The two social groups together have 13 cabinet berths, including those from the Chief Minister's JD(U) and the Congress.


He also referred to serious criminal cases against new inductees like Lalit Yadav, Surendra Yadav, Ramanand Yadav, and Kartikeya Singh.


Modi also pointed out that the new cabinet had "zero representation" from among Telis and upper caste Kayasthas while the number of Rajputs has gone down compared with the previous government of which BJP was a part.


"I wonder what are Nitish Kumar's compulsions (majboori) behind agreeing to such social imbalance and criminalisation", said Modi.




(With agency inputs)