Bihar Elections: Tejashwi Yadav Fires 12 Salvos Against NDA In Dawn Offensive

Patna: In a morning attack, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav fired a dozen questions at the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in Bihar and the Centre on Monday, seeking answers on behalf of 8 crore youths of the state for its underdevelopment.

Bihar’s population, as per the 2023 caste-based survey, is around 13.07 crore, and Tejashwi, in a post on X, asserted that Bihar has become the epicentre of unemployment, migration and poverty during the NDA government’s 20-year rule in the state and 11 years at the helm in Delhi – as pointed out by the annual reports of the NITI Aayog.

"The per capita income of Bihar in the past 20 years, despite the era of technology, liberalisation, and AI (Artificial Intelligence), has been lower than that of the poorest African countries – Uganda and Rwanda," he added.

The per capita income of Bihar was Rs 66,828 in 2023-24 at current prices, which was just 36.3 percent of the corresponding national per capita income of Rs 1.84 lakh at current prices. The per capita income of Rwanda was 1,010 dollars or Rs 89,033 in 2023. It is 1,340 dollars or Rs 1.18 lakh for Uganda in 2025.

Tejashwi, who is the leader of Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly, put forth 12 questions, adding that the eight crore youths of the state wanted to ask them to the chief minister (Nitish Kumar) of 20 years.

“Bihar produces several world-famous food grains, fruits and vegetables, including bananas, maize, makhana (foxnut), varieties of paddy, potato, litchi, mangoes, among others, but why has no food processing industry related to them been established in the past two decades?” he asked.

The RJD leader sought to know why Bihar was the centre of unemployment and why IT companies were not invited to Bihar, why they did not come, why they could not come, and why IT parks and SEZs (special economic zones) could not be created.

Pointing out that Bihar still buys fish from other states, he queried why its production was not encouraged in 20 years to increase the income of fishermen. He also asked why no big milk-food industry was established here to send milk, ghee, butter, cheese and other products to other states.

“The Nitish government should explain why industry-specific clusters were not established in the past 20 years, and what was done to encourage weaving and handloom industries. Why was the state not developed as a tourism hub despite having unlimited potential,” he asked.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s youngest son questioned why recruitment examinations and processes for government jobs have not been made transparent and regular. He also asked how much migration has happened in the past two decades and why it has phenomenally increased during this period.

Tejashwi had two stints as a deputy chief minister in the then Nitish-led Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) governments between 2015 and 2017, as well as 2022 and 2024.

“How many sugar, jute, paper mills and other factories shut down in the past 20 years, leading to how much loss in revenue and employment opportunities? How many lakh crores of rupees went to other states as expenditure on education and medical treatment? What percentage of the human resources of Bihar is working in other states?” he asked.

The RJD leader advised Nitish and Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to "hide their faces" from these issues pertaining to unemployment, migration and industries flaming in the hearts of 8 crore youths of Bihar. “You should come in front and answer them, else the youths will give a befitting reply in the coming Assembly polls,” Tejashwi added.

The morning attack caught the NDA unawares, and its partners, especially Nitish’s Janata Dal United (JDU) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, were preparing a counter-offensive, expected to be launched later in the day.

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