Tejashwi offers 'onion garland' to BJP as campaigning for Bihar election phase 1 concludes

Hitting out at the Centre amid the assembly election campaign in Bihar, Mahagathbandhan's CM candidate Tejashwi Yadav on Monday has offered a garland of onions to the NDA leaders. This is in response to rising prices of onions and comes days after Centre imposed stock limits on both retailers and wholesalers with immediate effect till December 31 in order to provide relief to consumers. Onion prices in the country have touched ₹ 90 and ₹ 100 per kg.

In a press briefing, Tejashwi along with his party leaders held onion garlands and said that corruption and unemployment have increased under the BJP and common man like Farmers, labourers, youth and traders are struggling for basic necessities due to rising prices of vegetables, etc. "Those who were speaking about onion when it touched ₹ 50 to 60 per kg are now silent when it has crossed ₹ 80 per kg. Farmers are being destroyed, youth is unemployed. Bihar is poor and people are migrating for education, jobs and medical help. Starvation is on the rise."

Taking to Twitter, Yadav said, "The common man is suffering because of back-breaking inflation, corruption and unemployment. Work and business have come to a standstill. Farmers, labourers, youth and traders are struggling to meet their food needs. The BJP has killed small businessmen. They roam round wearing onion garlands when there's price rise. Now, we're giving them this."

READ | Tejashwi Yadav Releases RJD Manifesto Ahead Of Bihar Polls, Reiterates 10 Lakh Job Promise

READ | Bihar Elections: Tejashwi Yadav releases Mahagathbandhan manifesto 'resolution for change'

Mahagathbandhan's manifesto

Mahagathbandhan Chief Ministerial face Tejashwi Yadav released the joint manifesto of Mahagathbandhan and said that the main agenda of the Mahagathbandhan government will be to provide employment and stop the migration of people due to the unavailability of jobs. He reiterated his promise of providing 10 lakh jobs by signing the process in his first cabinet meeting, if he is elected as the CM. Among other things, the manifesto promises to bring a law that can annul the three farm laws passed by Parliament recently and states that the Mahagathbandhan government will not treat "protesters or those criticising the government as traitors" and will not name them in false cases. Similar promises have been made in RJD's manifesto also. 

READ | 'Everyone will go to jail': Pappu Yadav in-sync with Paswan's claim; slams Bihar CM Nitish

Bihar Elections 2020

Bihar Assembly Elections will be held in three phases - on October 28, November 3 and November 7 - and counting of votes will be held on November 10. Nitish Kumar is seeking reelection and is the CM face for the NDA. Mahagathbandhan has chosen Tejashwi Yadav as their CM face. The BJP is contesting on a seat-sharing formula of 121-122 seats with the JDU and Mukesh Sahni of Vikasheel Insaan party and Jitan Ram Manjhi of HAM(S), while LJP will contest solo. Mahagathbandhan comprising of Congress and three left parties have are contesting on seat-sharing formula of 144-70-29 seats respectively. 

There are two other alliances in fray - Owaisi's AIMIM has stitched an alliance with Upendra Kushwaha-led RLSP, Mayawati's BSP, Devendra Yadav's SJDD, and SBSP called 'Grand Democratic Secular Front'. The alliance has fielded Kushwaha as the chief ministerial face. Another alliance named 'Progressive Democratic Alliance (PDA)', consist of Pappu Yadav's Jan Adhikar Party (JAP), Chandrashekhar Azad's Azad Samaj Party, MK Faizi's Social Democratic Party and Bahujan Mukti Party. They have made Pappu Yadav their CM face.

READ | Bihar CM Nitish Kumar taunts Chirag Paswan's attacks: 'Acting at behest of some advisors'