Bihar Polls: Congress Fielded 'Jinnah Sympathiser' in Jale Seat, Alleges BJP's Giriraj Singh

Union Minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh on Friday trained his guns at the Congress-RJD alliance in poll-bound Bihar, alleging a "sympathiser" of Mohammad Ali Jinnah has been fielded from Jale seat and sought to know whether both the parties support the ideology of Pakistan's founder. The Congress has given ticket to Maskoor Ahmad Usmani to contest Bihar polls from Jale assembly segment in Darbhanga district.

Referring to news reports that Jinnah's portrait was found in the office of Aligarh Muslim University Students' Union when Usmani was president of the body, Singh said, "The Congress has given the ticket to a supporter of Jinnah who divided India into two". "Now, leaders of Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) will have to answer to the people of the country whether they also support the ideology of Pakistan's founder," he said. Leaders of RJD, who are dreaming to rule the state, will have to speak on this issue, Singh said without naming Tejashwi Yadav. The Union minister also alleged that Bihar had become the headquarters of SIMI during when RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav was the chief minister.

Claiming that leaders of the Grand Alliance "can go to any extent for the sake of politics", Singh appealed to the people of Bihar that they should not be "misguided" by these parties. "Don't do anything which is not in the interest of Bihar and the country." Violence had broken out at the Aligarh Muslim University campus in Uttar Pradesh two years ago as the row over Muhammad Ali Jinnah's portrait on the campus triggered a protest. The then AMU spokesperson had said Jinnah was a founder member of the University Court and granted life membership of the student union. "Traditionally, photographs of all life members of are placed on the walls of the student union," he had said. Elections for the 243-member Bihar Assembly will be held in three phases — October 28, November 3 and November 7. The coalition of the RJD, Congress and Left parties is the main challenger to the ruling JD(U)-BJP alliance in the elections.

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