Rashtriya Janta Dal

Elections to the Bihar State Assembly Election Jan-Mar 2005

RJD manifesto minority-oriented

Expressing firm resolve to weed out corruption and effectively control the spiralling law and order situation, the ruling RJD offered a number of sops for minorities in its manifesto for the February Assembly elections in Bihar.

The manifesto, released by party president Lalu Prasad at a press conference here, promised to set up a “vikas sena”, besides toning up administrative units to ensure that the benefits of development reach dalits, backwards, minorities and other oppressed sections of society directly.

While pledging that the RJD would work for achieving its dream of all-round development in Bihar, the manifesto was weighted heavily in favour of minorities. He said that an Urdu directorate under the Raj Bhasha department would be set up, according the SC status to extremely backward and deprived sections of minority communities, besides posting an Urdu-knowing employee at all police stations in the state.

Mr Prasad said that the RJD was in favour of the Women’s Reservation Bill pending in Parliament, adding, however, that his party “will pursue our old demands for fixation of quota for women belonging to SC/ST, OBCs and minorities on the basis of their population”.