Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday said H.D. Deve Gowda was India’s first OBC premier as he attacked BJP president Amit Shah for claiming that Narendra Modi was the first OBC prime minister.
“H.D. Deve Gowda was the first OBC prime minister of the country and not Modi as claimed by Amit Shah,” Nitish Kumar told the media here. “Lack of knowledge and less awareness about any subject is dangerous.”
The JU-U leader said BJP leaders were experts in making false claims.
“BJP leaders can do anything for power. There is nothing new in Amit Shah’s claim that it was the BJP that gave the first OBC prime minister to India.”
Former prime minister Deve Gowda is chief of the Janata Dal (Secular).
In New Delhi on Friday, the BJP chief said it was his party that gave the maximum number of Other Backward Class (OBC) chief ministers and the first OBC prime minister to India.
Shah’s statement was seen as part of his party’s strategy to play the OBC card in caste-ridden Bihar politics ahead of the state assembly polls.
In Bihar, the BJP’s main rivals are Nitish Kumar’s JD-U and Lalu Prasad’s RJD. Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad are prominent OBC leaders, who enjoy strong support among the OBCs.