New Delhi:
Former Bihar Prime Minister Karpoori Thakur this evening posthumously received the country's highest award, Bharat Ratna, from the President of India, Droupadi Murmu. The award comes 35 years after his death; Karpoori Thakur died on February 17, 1988.
“I am very happy that the Government of India has decided to place the Bharat Ratna, the great Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur Ji, at the beacon of social justice, and that too at a time when we are celebrating his birth centenary. This prestigious recognition is a testament to his continued efforts as a champion of the marginalized and as an advocate for equality and empowerment,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
I am happy that the Government of India has decided to place the Bharat Ratna, the great Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur Ji, at the beacon of social justice, and that too at a time when we are commemorating his birth centenary. This prestigious recognition is a testament to his enduring… pic.twitter.com/9fSJrZJPSP
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 23, 2024
Karpoori Thakur, called “Jan Nayak” by many in the state, was Chief Minister of Bihar for a brief period – from December 1970 to June 1971 and from December 1977 to April 1979.
The Centre's recognition of the state's first non-Congress Chief Minister comes in response to a long-standing demand of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal United.
Today, the Prime Minister said that this “highest honor for late Karpoori Thakur ji on his birth centenary will create positive sentiments among the Dalits, deprived and neglected sections”.
Ahead of the general elections, it is being seen as the BJP's masterstroke in a state with 40 Assembly seats. Since Karpoori Thakur is a member of other backward castes, many see it as part of the BJP's attempt to win loyalty from this section, which has so far been loyal to Nitish Kumar.
Sources said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was well aware that after the state government's caste survey in Bihar and subsequent increase in quota for the economically backward classes, the other backward classes and the Dalits in jobs and educational institutions in Bihar , the ruling alliance led by Nitish Kumar enjoyed a clear lead.
“The government that was forced to posthumously hand over Bharat Ratna to the late Karpoori Thakur, the pioneer of social justice of the entire region, understood the rise of Bahujan concerns. Congratulations to the respected @laluprasadrjd ji @NitishKumar ji @yadavtejashwi ji. First the caste census and then increasing the scope of reservations scared them,” read a rough translation of a tweet by RJD MP Manoj Jha.
I think I did well I think I did well I think I did well Yes. Yes @laluprasadrjd ji @NitishKumar ji @yadavtejashwi ji is not like that. I think I did a good job. I think I did a good job.
— Manoj Kumar Jha (@manojkjhadu) January 23, 2024
Mr Kumar, a longtime ally of the BJP, had broken away from the NDA in the run-up to the 2014 general elections but returned to the fold in 2017. Less than two years ago, he stepped out again and formed a government with a new all-party alliance. Bihar – small and big – on board.
That move had left the then BJP out in the cold, with a fractured Lok Janshakti Party for company. The BJP's isolation factor has amplified the spin on today's events, its leaders indicate.
However, the BJP leaders in Bihar are surprised. The leaders confided that the party high command had never given them any hint in this regard. Otherwise, they would have “noisily raised this demand”, which was continuously raised by Mr Kumar's Janata Dal United and Tejashwi Yadav's Rashtriya Janata Dal.