Nitish Kumar takes a veiled dig at Home Minister Shah ahead of Bihar visit

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar took an indirect dig at Union Home Minister Amit Shah ahead of his proposed visit to the state to attend a BJP function for the celebration of Emperor Asoka's birth anniversary.

Kumar, who was addressing a function organised here by his JD(U) on the occasion of the jayanti' of the legendary Maurya emperor, also asked the people to be on guard against attempts by the saffron party, which he did not mention by name, to "exploit" the historical figure for "political gains".

"There are people who are trying to foment tension in society for political gains. Beware of them. In a few days, someone from Delhi will come and try to mislead you in the name of Samrat Asoka," Kumar said Wednesday in an oblique reference to Shah's scheduled visit on April 2 to Sasaram.

The CM also claimed that "these people played no role in the struggle for Independence. By invoking the name of Asoka, they will try to wean away (kabza karna chahte hain') some castes".

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