Bihar: Threat from within to Mahagatbandhan, govt faces resistance from coalition parties'

Bihar's ruling Mahagathbandhan government is facing resistance from coalition parties' own workers, the latest being a spokesperson of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) staging an indefinite fast for the last three days demanding enforcement of sports quota in government jobs.

RJD spokesman Mrityunjay Tiwari, who is also the president of Bihar Players' Association is staging a fast unto death at Patna's Moinul Haq stadium since May 27. "Under the Mukhyamantri Khel Vikas Yojana, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had announced government jobs to sportspersons. But for the last five years, no appointment has been made through sports quota," Tiwari said.

A number of sportspersons have also joined Tiwari's hunger strike and claim that no government official or doctor has visited them yet. Tiwari said these players have won medals and laurels for the state and yet are facing hardships. "This is the time when we should be practicing but we are sitting on a dharna for our rights," one of the players said, and sought the intervention of Bihar's deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, also a cricketer, to resolve the matter.

Tiwari, however, made it clear that he was not on a strike against the government but wanted to attract the CM's attention to the matter.

Apart from Tiwari, RJD MLA from Barhara Saroj Yadav was also on a hunger strike, which concluded after the deputy CM's intervention on Sunday. Yadav was demanding the removal of Bhojpur District Magistrate and other district administration officials on the allegations of corruption.

"I have proof against these corrupt officials, who have disbursed money without completion of work. I have demanded a vigilance probe against them and the deputy CM has said he will look into the matter within 10 days," Yadav told DNA. He too said that he was not staging a dharna against the grand alliance government but against the corrupt officials of Bhojpur district.

On several earlier occasions, RJD MLA Bhai Virendra had complained of the government officials not listening to him or taking his opinion into account.