Slams BJP over migration and Chhath trains; says Bihar doesn’t need such data where parents see their sons only on mobile screens
In poll-bound Bihar, the political battle is also a war of slogans — and symbols. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing a rally on Friday, tore into the RJD-Congress-Left Mahagathbandhan, declaring that the people of Bihar will not allow the return of “jungle raj”.
In a symbolic flourish, Modi urged the crowd to switch on their mobile flashlights. As thousands of beams lit up the evening sky, he smiled and quipped, “When there’s already so much light, what’s the need for a lantern?”—a jibe at the RJD’s iconic election symbol.
Pivoting to his government’s digital achievements, Modi hailed the data revolution, saying that “1 GB of data now costs less than a cup of tea,” which this ‘chaiwallah’, meaning him, as provided to people. He claimed affordable internet had unleashed Bihar’s youth, empowering them to create and earn through reels, videos, and online ventures—a sign, he said, of a “new, aspirational Bihar” shaped by the NDA’s policies.
But Prashant Kishor, founder of the Jan Suraaj Party, wasn’t impressed. A day later he turned Modi’s words against him with a stinging line saying “Modi ji, data nahi, beta wapas chahiye.”
Kishor accused the BJP of celebrating digital progress while ignoring Bihar’s painful migration story. “We don’t need free data,” he said, “we need jobs so that our sons don’t have to board Chhath special trains to Delhi and Mumbai.” Kishor added, “Bihar doesn’t want such data where old parents are forced to see their sons only on mobile phones.”
Urging voters to “vote for their own children this time,” Kishor said Bihar doesn’t want just connectivity, but connection; not only data plans, but a plan for dignity and homegrown opportunity.
