Patna: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi's "UP Bihar ke bhaiya" comment has triggered a widespread reaction from several political quarters, especially from Bihar, where Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, as well as JD(U) spokesperson Madhaw Anand, have strongly criticized the comment.
Referring to Channi's comment, Kumar said the remark was senseless, adding that Channi had forgotten the contribution of migrant workers from Bihar in building Punjab and its wealth. "It is totally senseless. Do they even know how big a role people from Bihar have played in Punjab? Do they know how many people are staying there? I feel very strange, the way people say just about anything", Kumar said on Thursday. Meanwhile, Madhaw Anand chose poetry to be his form of protest against the Punjab CM's remark.
Also read: PM Modi attacks Congress after Channi's 'UP, Bihar ke bhaiye' comment
"The biggest party in the country has turned itself into a drowning boat. The biggest reason for this is their arrogance, and the tendency to look down upon others. Those who are challenging Bihar's self-respect, I say to them: 'I live far away from family, for studies. With sheer hard work, I turn the impossible into possible. I pass the administrative exams, and am proud of my achievements. Look, I am a true Indian. I am not an outsider, I am a Bihari'", Anand said.
Days ahead of the polls, Channi made the controversial remark during a rally attended by Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi as well. 'Don't let UP, Bihar ke bhaiya enter Punjab', he said in the rally.
An FIR, meanwhile, was registered against Channi in Patna's Kadamkuan Police Station by dozens of BJP Yuva Morcha members, led by BJYM Vice President Manish Singh. The group demanded an apology from Channi, while also seeking his arrest. "I want to tell the CM of Punjab that, the constitution of this country, the law of this country has given all of us the right to live anywhere, to do business anywhere. But he has insulted the people of Bihar in the presence of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, which we will never tolerate. For this, we have registered an FIR in the Kadamkuan PS. Our demands are that Channi be arrested and that he should apologize to the people of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh", he said.
