To save 'divided Bihar,' JD-U MP backs Congress

Rajeev Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh is Bihar's ruling Janata Dal-United Member of Parliament, but he is busy these days to campaign for opposition Congress in the state assembly polls and pleading to dethrone the National Democratic Alliance government led by Nitish Kumar.

Singh, a rebel JD-U MP, considered close to chief minister Nitish Kumar till last year, is seeking vote for the Congress candidates in the assembly polls.

"Bring back Congress in power and sleep without any burden. The people of Bihar are fed up with one-man party government. It is high time to get rid of Nitish Kumar," Lalan Singh has been saying in meetings during polls campaign.

Singh has launched Nitish raj hatao (eradicate Nitish rule) last month to expose Kumar's 'double standard and his claims of development.'

He is trying to remind people that 'Nitish is in no way better than Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad so far as the issue of dividing society was concerned.'

"Nitish not only divided Dalits into Mahadalits, OBC into EBC and Muslims into Pasmanda Muslims, but he also had a clear vision of dividing the farmers by accepting the D Bandhopadya committee report on bataidari (land reform) after elections," Singh alleged.

Lalan Singh is constantly warning people 'not to vote for Nitish Kumar or NDA because it will prove costly for social peace in Bihar.'

In a bid to target the 'larger-than-life image of Nitish Kumar created by his media managers,' Lalan Singh never fails to say that he knows Nitish Kumar for 24 years. "I know him very well than any one else," Lalan said.

Lalan Singh, a former president of JD-U state unit, made it clear that he will not join the Congress now, but will campaign for that party to oust the Nitish Kumar-led government that has 'divided Bihar society.'

Interestingly, till date neither JD-U president Sharad Yadav nor Singh's friend-turned-foe Nitish Kumar challenged him or threatened to expel him from the party. With barely a week to go for first of the six phase polls, JD-U parliamentary party leader Ram Sundar Das has removed Lalan Singh from the post of deputy leader of JD-U parliamentary party on Tuesday night.

Singh, who belongs to the powerful landed upper caste of Bhumihar, has been trying to dent Nitish Kumar's image by exposing his negative points after he resigned as the state party president early this year.

The Bhumihars were known to have supported Nitish Kumar in the last elections in 2005.