Tejashwi Yadav's men manhandle reporters; Bihar Deputy CM refutes corruption charges, calls it 'BJP conspiracy'

Several mediapersons were manhandled by the security personnel of Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav at the Bihar Secretariat on Wednesday.

A fight broke out between a few reporters at the Secretariat just when Tejashwi, son of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, was about to address the media following a cabinet meeting in Patna over the CBI raids and the corruption charges levelled against the Yadav family.

Tejashwi had earlier in the day lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for trying to break the alliance between Lalu Prasad Yadav-led RJD and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United).

Tejashwi attended the Bihar cabinet meeting on Wednesday in what could be seen as an act of defiance a day after Nitish Kumar gave him a four-day ultimatum saying that he should either prove his innocence or resign from the government.

However, Tejashwi attending the cabinet meeting along with his older brother and cabinet member Tej Pratap Yadav seems to be a signal that he is not resigning from his post anytime soon.

He said that the First Information Report (FIR) filed against him in a corruption case is a "political vendetta".

"It is a conspiracy by (BJP President) Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They have always been scared of my father, but it seems they are scared of me too. Right from the beginning, they are trying to break the 'mahagathbandhan', and accuse us in all possible ways. Not just us, they are always ready to malign Bihar for all possible crime," Tejashwi said after the cabinet meeting.

"From Day One, they have been trying to break our alliance (RJD-JDU)... The BJP is surprised to see a 28-year-old to not just rule the state, but also govern it efficiently. We will take an action against them. They don't deserve a place here," the deputy CM said adding that the corruption charges against him are false.

"Since the day I joined office, I had made it clear that I will follow zero tolerance against corruption. During my reign as Bihar's deputy CM, I have not done anything against the government and its function. All the three departments under me flourished. Not one case of corruption has been found so far," Tejashwi said.

Tejashwi added: "They are bringing up cases of 2004 against me. I was 13-14 years old at that time. How can a 13-14 years old child do all this?"

He won the support of the Congress and the other opposition parties but Nitish Kumar remained silent on the matter.

Meanwhile, JD(U) official spokesperson Neeraj Kumar told the media: "We hope that the accused comes forward and provide evidences to the public to prove their innocence so that the people can be assured that the allegations which have been framed are incorrect. It is their responsibility to provide proof."

Kumar, for the first time on Tuesday, broke his silence after a four-hour meeting of the JD(U) and indicated that his alliance with the Congress and RJD could survive only if Tejashwi resigned from his post. 

"I shall not compromise with my principles. I am firm on my resolve of zero tolerance against corruption," Kumar told his party in Patna indicating that a detailed counter to the CBI charges against the Yadav family must be issued.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had conducted raids on the Yadav family last week over charges that Lalu had acquired three acres of land in Patna at a cheaper rate when he was the country's railway minister in 2004. Tejashwi is also one of the owners of the land on which a mall is being constructed.