Farmers Movement Archive

Bihar election will strengthen Congress, says Sachin Pilot

PATNA: Congress leader Sachin Pilot tells TOI’s Sheezan Nezami that the ongoing assembly polls will benefit his party as CM Nitish Kumar has done nothing for Bihar in the last 15 years. Excerpts: What message do you want to give to people in Bihar?There is huge anti-incumbency factor against CM Nitish, who has done nothing in the last 15 years. He boasts of good governance, but what happened in Munger is the reality of Bihar. People must vote for a change and I am sure young people want that change. What about Congress’s prospects in this election?We had won the previous assembly election with RJD and JD(U), but then Nitish ji left. This time again, Congress and RJD are together with three other Left parties. Also, we are contesting 70 seats. This is good for our future. We are not only fighting to get the Mahagathbandhan into power, but also to strengthen Congress in Bihar as well. There are lots of confusion within Congress as you have seen in Rajasthan. Also, states like UP and Bihar lack strong leadership. How Congress will counter these issues?There is no confusion in Congress at all. We were in power in 2004 and then in 2009. Haar jeet chalti rahti hai. But, Congress has ideology, commitment and respect for each other. We do not have politics of acrimony and young people are looking forward to us as Congress is the only alternative to take on BJP at national level. We have to work hard in many states and Priyanka Gandhi is working very hard in UP. In Bihar, Congress will be strengthened after this election. Your contemporary Jyotiraditya Scindia left Congress and joined BJP. Several other leaders have also left the party?See, people have left as well as joined Congress. But we will carry on with the spirit of ideology. Congress raises the voice of people and we are doing issue-based politics. It is said that your hard work paid dividends in the Rajasthan election. How will you utilize that skill in the Bihar election?I have had the privilege of being the party’s state president there for six and a half years. When I assumed office, Congress had 20 out of 200 MLAs in Rajasthan, while BJP had 165 seats. We focused on taking everybody along. Also, young people need to be motivated. The same we are trying here. What are the strengths and weaknesses of Congress in Bihar?We have ideology and leadership across the country. We have a rich history of struggle. Congress works for the farmers, youth, labourers and everyone. You will find a Congress flag in every village. As far as weakness is concerned, there are states where we are out of power and we have to work hard for comeback. Rahul Gandhi has visited Bihar twice for election campaign and talked about demonetisation, farm laws, migration and unemployment. Will these issues garner votes? He has narrated the truth. Everyone has faced problems due to demonetisation, GST and lockdown. Both the Centre and the state government had left people to walk back home without food and water. People will remember these things. Even in Bihar, there is no employment opportunity and people are compelled to migrate. I will again say Nitish did nothing for Bihar. What will you say to PM Modi, who talks about Ram Mandir and Jungle Raj?Since last 15 years, they are ruling Bihar and still talking about what happened 30 years ago. This is the sign of weakness. Discussion should be on electricity, employment, education and fertilizers. But they talk about Hindu-Muslim and China. Also, what I feel is that some dignity and decorum should be maintained by people holding respectable positions. They should not make personal and family attacks.

The Times of India

2020-10-31

Patna