New Delhi- RJD leader and Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial face, Tejashwi Yadav, on Sunday declared that if his government is formed in Bihar, he will scrap the Waqf Act. Addressing a massive rally in Araria, Yadav said his focus as Chief Minister would be on tackling unemployment, improving education, and making Bihar the “number one state” in the country.

“I want to tell you that when I become the CM, Tejashwi will throw the Waqf Board law bill into the dustbin. When I become the CM, every Bihari will become CM — meaning ‘Chinta Mukt’ (free from worries). Bihar today lacks good colleges, education is poor, poverty is high, and migration continues. My only dream is to make Bihar number one,” Yadav said, attacking the ruling NDA for “20 years of stagnation.” His remarks come amid a growing controversy over a viral video of RJD MLC Qari Soheb, who was heard saying that the Waqf bill would be thrown away if Tejashwi Yadav becomes Chief Minister.

Earlier in the day, the BJP accused the RJD and its allies of hypocrisy and “threatening the Constitution.” BJP’s IT Cell head Amit Malviya posted on social media that “those who claim to save the Constitution are the very ones plotting to change it.” “Such people want to seize the land and rights of Dalits, Backward Classes, and tribals,” Malviya said, questioning whether Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav — who project themselves as protectors of the Constitution — would take responsibility for such statements. “Will they allow people like Qari Soheb to encroach on the land and reservation rights of poor Hindus?” he asked. In his video, Qari Soheb had also called for defeating NDA allies and pledged that once Tejashwi assumes office, “all such bills would be thrown away” to build a government based on “unity, brotherhood, and humanity.” --IANS sas/pgh