Kharge Attacks NDA, Says PM Modi “Making Nitish Kumar Invisible” Ahead of Bihar Polls

Patna: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday launched a sharp attack on the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing them of deliberately sidelining Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during the ongoing election campaign. Addressing a press conference in Patna, Kharge questioned Nitish Kumar’s absence from the Prime Minister’s recent roadshow and rally in the state capital, suggesting that the BJP is attempting to make the JD(U) leader “invisible” ahead of the polls.

Kharge remarked that while he saw “many impressive pictures” of the Prime Minister’s roadshow, Nitish Kumar’s presence was conspicuously missing. “In the rally too, Nitish was nowhere to be seen. They have made him disappear to such an extent that they don’t even mention him as the Chief Minister,” he said. He further asked, “What will happen after this election, if he is treated this way even now?”

Accusing the BJP of manipulation and political manoeuvring, Kharge said, “I cannot predict the future, but Prime Minister Modi is playing a trick. He is trying to make Nitish Kumar invisible.” He then targeted the Bihar Chief Minister’s long and shifting political journey, saying that Nitish Kumar believes that taking the oath of office nine times guarantees him another term. “Even if you have taken oath a hundred times, you have still done nothing for Bihar,” he said.

Kharge also criticised the state government’s financial assistance scheme for women, under which ₹10,000 was recently transferred into beneficiaries’ accounts. He argued that Nitish Kumar was attempting to convert the scheme into electoral gains. “Nitish Kumar thinks depositing ₹10,000 in women’s accounts will get him votes. The people of Bihar are intelligent. Even if you deposit ₹10 lakh, they will still vote wisely,” he asserted.

He questioned the timing of the initiative, pointing out that the government had not introduced such support in the past two decades. “For 20 years, the idea of giving ₹10,000 to women didn’t occur to them? And didn’t it occur to Prime Minister Modi for 11 years? These are all election promises,” Kharge said. He further alleged that both Modi and Nitish were misleading the people with last-minute schemes and announcements.

As Bihar heads into a crucial election, voting for its 243-member Assembly will take place in two phases on November 6 and 11, with counting scheduled for November 14. The Congress president’s remarks signal a renewed offensive by the opposition as the campaign enters its final stretch.