Bihar Politics: Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and BJP’s strongman Samrat Chaudhary is currently at the center of political storm. His opponents, especially Prashant Kishore and Tejashwi Yadav, who have been prominent in the programs of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and JP Nadda, have made sensational attacks one after the other over fake degrees, name changes and serious criminal cases.
1. Fake degrees and ‘Maha-fraud’ to change name
The most sharp questions have been raised on Emperor Chaudhary’s educational degrees and his identity, Prashant Kishore claims that Chaudhary, who took a matriculation examination called ‘Samrat Kumar Maurya’, failed by scoring 234 marks. Both Tejashwi Yadav and Prashant Kishore alleged how Chaudhary, who had suddenly obtained a D. Lit from California University and a PhD degree from Kamaraj University in the 2005 affidavit. Kishore claimed that Chaudhary changed his names repeatedly to help the vote bank, Rakesh Kumar from Samrat Kumar Maurya, Rakesh Kumar Chaudhary and finally Emperor Chaudhary.
2. Tarapur murder case and claim to be a minor
The most serious allegations against Samrat Chaudhary are related to murder cases: Tarapur murder case (1995): Prashant Kishore alleged that 6-7 people of the Kushwaha community were killed in the 1995 Tarapur murder case, in which Samrat Chaudhary was accused. Kishore alleges that Chaudhary used fake documents (birthday 1 May 1981) to prove himself a minor and released from the court. Chaudhary has also been among the suspected accused in the 1998 Sadanand Singh murder case and Shilpi Jain murder case.
Political conspiracy and denial of allegations
All these allegations have been strictly retaliated by Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, described the allegations of Prashant Kishore and Tejashwi Yadav as “baseless and wrong”. Chaudhary said on the Shilpi Gautam murder case that the CBI has fully investigated it and he has nothing to do with it. He said that “Rakesh who is being talked about is a resident of Hajipur.” On the 1995 case, he said that he and 22 members of his family were unnecessarily imprisoned on the instructions of Lalu Yadav. He retaliated and asked for the account of Prashant Kishore’s earnings (Rs 241 crore).
Why is Emperor Chaudhary important for BJP?
Emperor Chaudhary, who comes from Kushwaha society, is considered to be the leadership of BJP’s future. His aggressive style and Nitish Kumar’s vocal opposition makes him in the headlines. He comes from the Koiri community (4.2% population). The BJP is presenting him as an OBC leader as part of a strategy to maintain Kurmi-Koiri votes. In just six years of joining BJP in 2017, he reached the post of Deputy Chief Minister from the state president. Being at the center of power, he is bound to have a political attack, but these serious allegations related to degrees and criminal history can become a big challenge for the BJP’s credibility in the upcoming assembly elections.