Poster war erupts between JD(U) and RJD in Bihar

The ruling JD(U) and opposition RJD in Bihar were locked in a poster war on Wednesday, an indication that the political temperature is likely to rise further in the run up to assembly polls due later this year. Posters pillorying the jailed RJD supremo Lalu Prasad had come up at many vantage points in the city late Tuesday.

The JD(U), to which eyes were turned, in keeping with its style maintained that these posters were not part of its official propaganda but had been put up by supporters enthusiastic about Kumars return to power and wanting to remind the people of the failures of the preceding regime. Cutting close to the bone, the posters carried a morphed image showing Prasad, a former chief minister himself, standing behind bars flanked by party leaders Mohd Shabuddin and Raj Ballabh Yadav. Both these RJD leaders were convicted in heinous offences and therefore cannot contest polls like the RJD chief.

The image was captioned Nyay, implying justice has been ensured. Below it there were other pictures seeking to highlight the NDA governments proclaimed achievements in the fields of health, education, law and order and reducing malnutrition among children. The posters also had a map of the state below which were two more pictures titled Vikas (development) and rozgar (employment).

There was even a poster with a caricature of Prasad talking to a djinn (an intelligent spirit in Muslim mythology) a colorful metaphor often used by him to assert that he held magical spell over the masses. Not going to be ensnared by you any more, the djinn is shown as telling Prasad in the poster, which also has a couple of slogans besides a telling banner headline lo dekh lo (come and see for yourself) beckoning onlookers to see the contrasting styles of functioning of the arch rivals the JD(U) and RJD.

The RJD Wednesday came out with a riposte showing caricatures of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi with the bottomline from the Rashtriya Janata Dal. The party shared the poster on its official twitter handle as well as that of Prasad, who is in Ranchi serving sentences in fodder scam cases.

Kumar, who is also the JD(U) national president and Sushil Kumar Modi, who is a top BJP leader, are shown in the map standing atop a marooned island resembling the shape of Bihars map an oblique reference to the recurring floods that ravage the state every year. Kursi ke pyaare, Bihar ke hatyaare (lovers of power, murderers of Bihar) ran the bold headline on the RJD poster.

Below it were inscribed verses accusing the government of rampant corruption and indifference to joblessness and social and economic inequality. The posters are the latest in a series by the two parties which had entered into a short-lived alliance that also included the Congress and won the 2015 assembly polls hands down, but came apart with Kumars abrupt exit in 2017.

Assembly elections in the state are scheduled in November and the NDA, which also comprises Ram Vilas Paswans LJP, is brimming with confidence after having swept the Lok Sabha polls. It had bagged 39 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, which translated into a lead in 225 of the 243 assembly seats. Misgivings in the JD(U) camp that an ambitious BJP may give it a raw deal have been put paid to with top BJP leader Amit Shah repeatedly asserting that Kumar would lead the NDA charge.

The two parties have also allied for the February 8 assembly polls in Delhi, extending the coalition beyond Bihar. The five-party Grand Alliance led by RJD faces an uphill task, despite the incumbency factor being in its favour. This is not because of the absence of Prasad for his sons have taken over the mantle, but are yet to prove their mettle..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)