'People are fed up with rising crimes and poor law and order.'
'Modi must have got feedback and decided not to touch the 'jungle raj' issue as it will backfire.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi maintained complete silence on the spate of crimes, particularly a spate of recent murders, in Bihar during a lengthy public address at Motihari in East Champaran district on Friday.
In a rare speech, and perhaps for the first time, he did not recall the 'jungle raj' of the Lalu-Rabri years, his favourite jibe during his visit to the state in the recent past as well over the last two decades.
"Modi has visited Bihar 53 times since becoming PM in 2014 and he never missed an opportunity to recall jungle raj to create a sense of fear among the people and to target Lalu Prasad," stated Sudhansu Singh, a friend of Abhisek Varun, an ICICI Lombard branch manager whose body was discovered three days ago after he went missing on Sunday night.
"But on his visit today, he hardly used the word jungle raj to target and attack the Opposition.
"Today Bihar is facing more or less a situation like jungle raj; fear is palpable among the people, businessmen are facing threats to their lives, professionals like doctors, lawyers, engineers, and contractors are living in fear," Singh added.
The state has witnessed a disturbing surge in violent crime, with reports of businessmen, traders, politicians from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, and close relatives of Janata Dal-United leaders, lawyers, teachers, bankers, and youths being killed.
Earlier this month, prominent businessman Gopal Khemka was shot dead near his building in the heart of Patna, followed by a series of reported murders including a private school owner, a lawyer, a mini-mart owner, and a sand trader.
Questions over Bihar's declining law and order have persisted for months, but the recent spree of killings across Patna and the state in the 18 days of July itself has undeniably put the ruling National Democratic Alliance -- comprising the Bharatiya Janata Party, Janata Dal-United, Hindustani Awam Morcha and Lok Janshakti Party-Ramvilas -- on the back foot.
A day before Modi's visit, five gun-toting criminals brazenly shot dead Chandan Mishra, a murder convict out on parole for treatment, inside an ICU room of a reputed private hospital in the heart of Patna on Thursday morning, before fleeing in Bollywood style.
While Modi did attack the RJD and Congress, accusing them of corruption, looting public funds meant for welfare schemes, and neglecting the poor and marginalised, he conspicuously avoided any mention of 'jungle raj' or reminded the public of it.
This stands in stark contrast to his previous visits.
During his last visit to Bihar in June, at a rally in Siwan district, Modi said, 'People of Bihar have ended the jungle raj created by the Congress, RJD, adding, 'Those who brought jungle raj to Bihar are looking for an opportunity to repeat their old deeds.'
Last November, Modi credited Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with pulling Bihar out of 'jungle raj'.
Throughout the 2024 Lok Sabha election campaign, Modi consistently used the term in public meetings, claiming the RJD had only delivered 'jungle raj' to Bihar.
Before Friday's Motihari rally Modi had visited Bihar four times during which he had consistently invoked 'jungle raj' of the Lalu-Rabri governments to caution voters against voting for the RJD-led Opposition.
Kanchan Bala, a social activist, expressed little surprise at Modi's omission, because the current scenario is worse than the period he referred to as jungle raj.
"Modi understands that people are unhappy over murders, rape, loot, robbery and other crimes reported in Hindi dailies on a daily basis," she stated. "This is not a secret anymore; it is in the public. There is no rule of law and Nitish Kumar is doing nothing."
Political analyst D M Diwakar suggests that with crime spiralling out of control and the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government failing to check the killings which have become a "new normal", Modi deliberately avoided the 'jungle raj' reference because it will go against the NDA government ahead of the Bihar assembly elections later this year.
"As of now, people are fed up with rising crimes and poor law and order. Modi must have got feedback and decided not to touch the 'jungle raj' issue as it will backfire," Diwakar added.
Official data from the Bihar police's latest State Crime Records Bureau paints a grim picture, with 1,376 murders with an average of 229 each month between January and June this year, compared to 2,786 in all of 2024 and 2,863 in 2023.
Ironically, Additional Director General of Police Kundan Krushnan, a senior IPS officer, attributed the recent surge in crime to farmers and poor farm labourers, who are without work during the lean season of April, May and June.
Krushnan reportedly defended his theory on Wednesday, stating that the absence of a crop season between April and July leads to widespread unemployment among farmhands, escalating land-related clashes.
Some, particularly the youth, even resort to contract killings for quick money, the ADG claimed, noting a rise in murder cases mainly between May and July.
He cited crime data showing 217 murder cases in April and 284 in May this year.
Similarly in 2024, 231 murders took place in April, 254 in May, 292 in June and 279 in July. In August, it came down to 249 cases.
Even in 2023, 215 murders were recorded in April, 279 in May, 278 in June and 270 in July. It came down to 250 in August.
In 2022, the state witnessed 256 murders in April, 301 in May, 297 in June and 262 in July. Again it dipped to 257 in August.
Krushnan's controversial remarks drew sharp criticism from both Opposition and ruling NDA leaders.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, the leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, dismissed Krushnan's theory as an attempt to cover up police failures and to keep the ruling alliance happy.
'People on roads, streets, markets, and offices are expressing concern and fear following killings reported daily. This is an example of lawlessness as no one is safe,' Tejashwai asserted.
Union Minister Chirag Paswan, head of the LJP-R, part of the NDA, also questioned Krushnan's theory, and said the Bihar police have failed to control crime.
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff
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