In a demeaning post on X, the Kerala Congress ridiculed the people of Bihar by comparing them with ‘Bidi’. The post was made in reference to the recent Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms announced by the Modi government, under which the tax on Bidis has been reduced from 28% to 18%.

To attack the BJP government for reducing tax on Bidis, all that the Kerala Congress could come up with was equating ‘Bidi’ with ‘Biharis’. Apparently, by Congress logic, the people of Bihar are synonymous with Bidi just because both words happen to have the same initials. This is not the first time that the Congress or an INDI alliance party has mocked the people of Bihar. Biharis have historically been at the receiving end of the vitriol and contempt of the INDI alliance parties.

How INDI Alliance leaders have consistently insulted the people of Bihar with slurs and false claims

People of Bihar have faced blatant discrimination and hatred in other states under the rule of the opposition parties. Recently, INDI alliance politicians from Tamil Nadu expressed baseless fears that lakhs of Bihari people were added to the voter list in Tamil Nadu by the Election Commission.

The INDI Alliance politicians, including Chief Minister MK Stalin, claimed that the Bihar migrants, who have been working in the state, would spoil the ‘culture and tradition’ of the state if added to the state’s voter list. There is no legal or constitutional bar to an Indian citizen being added to the electoral roll of a constituency without having a permanent residence in that constituency. The groundless fears of these INDI Alliance politicians are not based on law or logic but on absolute disdain for the people of Bihar.

Congress misrule and RJD’s ‘Jungle Raj’ stripped Bihar of dignity, progress, and hope for generations

Bihari migrants have endured insults and have faced physical attacks in other states from the north to the south. The fact that they still choose to live in these states instead of returning to their home state speaks volumes about the grim reality of Bihar. It is true that the people of Bihar migrate to other states of the country seeking work opportunities. They form a large chunk of the country’s workforce, and have been silent but active contributors across sectors to the country’s progress.

The migration of Biharis to other, more developed states is not a new phenomenon and has been happening for years. The people of Bihar have been compelled to leave their homes to find a living in other states, and this has been a direct consequence of decades of misrule of the Congress and the Jungle Raj of the Lalu Yadav regime.

The scale of the damage inflicted on the state during the rule of the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) can be estimated from the fact that, even so many years after the end of the Jungle Raj, the state is reeling under its lasting effects.

Congress misrule and RJD’s Jungle Raj not just pushed the state into an unending loop of crime and poverty but also left a permanent scar on the psyche of the people of Bihar, who have been forced to choose survival over self-respect. The word ‘Bihari’ itself has become an insult because the people of Bihar were not just robbed of all prospects of development and progress, but also of basic dignity by their own politicians.

During the 15 years of Lalu Yadav’s Jungle Raj, all the industries were systematically wiped out from the state as extortion and killings of industrialists became rampant. With the relocation of industries, all the opportunities for employment for the local Biharis were lost. Mere existence in the state became a challenge as crimes like murder and kidnapping became the norm in the state. Bihar became a den of mafias and criminals, who enjoyed the patronage and protection of the government itself. Common people were left to fend for themselves.

Dynastic parties like the RJD couldn’t care less about the interests of the people of Bihar. It is evident from the fact that the party is in alliance with parties and politicians who have openly expressed their disdain for the people of Bihar. Besides, every time the party comes to power in Bihar, criminals are emboldened and lawlessness returns to the state. While the history of RJD’s rule has been a dark chapter for Bihar, its prospects of giving good governance to the state appear also grim.