CPIML condemned the actions of BJP workers during the September 4 Bihar bandh, saying their behaviour exposed the party’s reliance on intimidation and hooliganism to assert authority in the state. The people of Bihar have clearly rejected the bandh outright and openly resisted it.
CPIML General Secretary Comrade Dipankar said the attempt by the BJP to implicate the Voter Adhikar Yatra in the case of the reported insult to Prime Minister Modi’s mother was a desperate political ploy. No campaign speech delivered by any leader, nor any slogans raised during the entire 1,300-kilometre yatra from Sasaram to Ambedkar Park in Patna, contained any abusive words. The random person who reportedly uttered the abuse has already been arrested, and the incident has been condemned by all. There was therefore no justification for the bandh, which explains the very limited public response.
Comrade Dipankar noted that although the bandh was called in the name of the NDA women’s wing, there was little participation of women. Reports from across Bihar indicated forcible attempts by BJP leaders and activists to impose the bandh by stopping vehicles and pedestrians, closing shops, heckling women, and hurling abuses. The combination of the desperation to deflect attention from the agenda of disenfranchisement and electoral manipulation, and the feudal-patriarchal arrogance of power, resulted in an alarming exhibition of hooliganism on the streets of Bihar.
He further stated that the issue of respect for women puts the BJP squarely in the dock. BJP star campaigners from Narendra Modi to junior leaders, television spokespersons, and the party’s online troll network are among the most habitual offenders. Beyond verbal abuse, the violence faced by women in Modi-era BJP-ruled states has reached horrifying proportions. The slogan “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” has become a cruel joke in Bihar, where crimes against women, including minors and schoolgirls, have become commonplace. The question of dignity, security, equal rights, and fearless freedom for women will continue to haunt the BJP across Bihar and beyond.
The people of Bihar have now understood the values and ideas the BJP represents. CPIML has appealed to the people of Bihar to recognise the reality of such forces and to remove them from positions of power.
