RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said on Saturday that JD(U) and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar were “misusing” public money to support their political campaign ahead of the next Bihar Assembly elections.

Speaking at the Patna party headquarters, Tejashwi said that programs like “Mahila Samvad” are a front for political propaganda and that government funds are being “siphoned off.”

“The Nitish Kumar government has ordered digital chariots worth Rs 225 crore in the name of Mahila Samvad,” said Tejashwi.

He stated: “Six hundred digital election chariots have been sanctioned using taxpayers’ money, with the Rural Development Department spending Rs 225 crore on what they described as the CM’s ‘journey’, a campaign that allegedly underwent multiple name changes to mask its true purpose.”

Tejashwi said that since December 2024, just six or seven cabinet sessions have authorized plans totaling Rs 76,622 crore, the most of which are linked to building. He accused the administration of masterminding widespread financial misconduct.

Additionally, he said that on December 19, a single cabinet meeting approved Rs 1,949 crore. “Ministers are taking 30 per cent commission on these projects,” he said.

Tejashwi said, calling the situation “loot of the government treasury,” that “local contractors are being sidelined in favor of outsiders, and tenders are being rushed through to cover election costs.”

“Rs 25,000–30,000 crore is being paid annually as interest, amounting to 8-9 per cent of the state’s total borrowing,” he said, warning of the state’s escalating debt.

Chief Minister Nitish began the massive ‘Mahila Samvad’ campaign on Friday with the goal of reaching more than 2 crore women, educating them about government programs, and helping them become Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant).

According to the plan, 600 events took place on the first day of the campaign, and 70,000 Mahila Samvad programs would be planned across the state over the course of the next 60 days.