‘Strict action irrespective of stature,’ assures Deputy CM Tejaswi Yadav

Patna(PTI): With a class 12 student being shot dead by a Janata Dal (United) MLC’s son in a road rage case late last night, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Tejasvi Yadav on Sunday said that action against the accused will be taken irrespective of his stature. “We’ll take strict action irrespective of stature,” Tejashwi Yadav said.

Earlier, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav also condemned the killing and called for stringent probe in the matter.

A 20-year-old youth was shot dead allegedly by the son of a woman JD(U) legislator in a road rage incident near Gaya, triggering protests by the BJP.

Aditya Kumar Sachdeva, a class 12 student, was shot dead allegedly by Rocky Kumar Yadav, the son of JD(U) MLC, following a scuffle between the youngster and his friends over overtaking their Range Rover SUV near the police lines on Saturday evening.

The Gaya Police have arrested the JD (U) MLC’s husband Bindi Yadav and the legislator’s bodyguard for allegedly helping the culprit escape.

In a statement lashed with sarcasm, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday said the “Jungle Raj II government” in the state is performing “better” than the Central government.

“If we compare with the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, development is taking place at a very fast pace in in Jungle Raj II in Bihar,” Tejashwi told reporters sarcastically.

Referring to Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari’s claim that National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) was constructing 75 km of roads per day in the country, Tejashwi claimed the body built “merely 60 km roads in Bihar in 2015-16, whereas Bihar’s Public Works Department constructed 1,500 km of roads in the same period”.

Talking about his tenure as the state road construction minister, he said NHAI laid foundation stones for 20 km in Bihar, while state agencies for 750 km. “Our Grand Alliance government has started implementing promises made before the Assembly polls. We’ve implemented total prohibition, besides taking steps to give loans of up to Rs 4 lakh through student credit card, 35 per cent quota for women, free wi-fi in university and colleges,” Tejashwi said. “Our government has started delivering results in just six months. This is just a beginning and we will work hard to fulfil our promises,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.

He was speaking to reporters with newly-nominated RJD youth wing national president Bulo Mandal, a Lok Sabha member from Bhagalpur, and Mohammad Kari Suhaib, who was appointed RJD Bihar’s youth wing president.

As part of RJD’s expansion plans ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Tejashwi stressed the need for strengthening party’s organisational structure across the country in which, the youth wing would play a important role. Prominent among those present on the occasion were state unit president Ram Chandra Purbe, national spokesman Manoj Jha and ministers in the Nitish government Alok Mehta and Shiv Chandra Ram.