Stay firmly where you are: Nitish Kumar reaches out to Biharis working in Gujarat

Our Chief Secretary and DGP are in constant touch with their counterparts in Gujarat, said Nitish Kumar.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday reached out to those people from state who are working in Gujarat, saying they must “stay firmly” where they are. The Bihar Chief Minister told reporters that senior government officials were constantly taking stock of the situation in Gujarat.

Speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of a function in Patna, the Janata Dal United (JDU) leader said, “Our Chief Secretary and DGP are in constant touch with their counterparts in Gujarat. We are keeping a watch on the situation there.”

According to news agency PTI, he further said, “I would also appeal to the people (from Bihar living in Gujarat) that they stay firmly where they were notwithstanding the incidents that have taken place.”

The remark from the Bihar Chief Minister came a day after leader of opposition in Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, accused him of inaction over the issue. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader had on Monday said, “People from Bihar who are living in different states across the country are being attacked. What has Bihar CM done to stop it?”

Tejashwi had also attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Gujarat over the issue of migrants fleeing the state, alleging that it was a “big conspiracy plotted” by the ruling party.

In a related development, the BJP has accused Congress MLA Alpesh Thakor of inciting mob violence against migrant workers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The BJP also demanded Thakor’s expulsion from the Congress party.

Targeting Congress president Rahul Gandhi over the issue, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said, “If Rahul Gandhi is actually worried for Gujarat, Bihar and India then he must immediately expel Alpesh Thakor from the party. This is what BJP demands from Rahul Gandhi and Congress Party.”

Several migrant workers from UP, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh fled the state after several mob attacks on them in connection to the rape of a toddler in Sabarkantha.

On September 28, a 14-month-old toddler - from the Thakor community - was allegedly raped in a village near Himmatnagar town of Sabarkantha district. Ravindra Sahu, a labourer hailing from Bihar and working in a local ceramic factory, was later arrested in connection with the rape.

(With agency inputs)