Centre mulling debt waiver for WB in political interest:Nitish

Patna, Jun 25: Slamming the Centre for not considering the demand for special category status to Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday, Jun 24 said it smacked of ''bipartisan political interest''

While reports suggest that the Centre was mulling debt loan waiver to states like West Bengal, Punjab and Kerala apparently in ''bipartisan political interest'', it has rejected Bihar's just demand for special category status to tide over economic backwardness, Kumar said at a seminar ''Economic Challenges of Bihar''.

Kumar was alluding to a changed political situation in Kerala and West Bengal after election of UDF and TC-Congress alliance to power and the ensuing Assembly polls in Punjab where the Congress was a contender for power.

Alleging the Centre stonewalled the special category demand for Bihar thus ''discriminating'' over 10 crore people, the chief minister said he will continue to pursue the matter till its logical conclusion.

"We have already collected over one crore signature of the people of Bihar and submit the same to the President in due course of time," he said, adding further pressure will be mounted on the Centre in due course of time.

"If need be, we will organise a massive public campaign on the special category demand and appeal to the people to congregate at the Gandhi Maidan to agitate till the time the Centre budged to the rightful demand of the state," Kumar said.

PTI