Bihar Voted Against Intolerance, Hatred, Says Congress, AAP, Trinamool

www.mangaloretoday.com

New Delhi, Nov 8, 2015:  The mandate in Bihar was a vote against "intolerance" and "hatred" said the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party and the ruling Trinamool Congress of West Bengal as the counting threw up a clear lead of the Grand Alliance over the NDA.

"This is a victory of unity over divisiveness. Humility over arrogance. Love over hate. A victory of the people of Bihar," Congress vice President Rahul Gandhi tweeted earlier today.

"The truth is, this victory is not against NDA but against the ideology of BJP, RSS and Modi. This is a message against putting Hindus against Muslims and making them fight to win elections," Mr Gandhi later said.

Delhi Chief minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, who has been at loggerheads with Central government and the BJP, said it was important that BJP lost the Assembly elections in Bihar so it realises that "hate politics" will not work in the country.

"It is important that BJP lose Bihar so that they know that hate politics will not work in this country. People want love and peace, not hate," he had said on Twitter.  

Trinamool chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted, "Victory of tolerance, defeat of intolerance".

The Bihar vote has been seen by many as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s stewardship as well as a comment on the growing debate on intolerance.

This was especially marked after the Dadri incident and the subsequent row over alleged incidents of cow slaughter and beef consumption. The debate entered the electoral arena in Bihar, where Muslims form a chunk of the electorate.