Rewari Politics? Jan Suraaj Flags Concerns Over Bihar’s Pre-Poll Cash Scheme

Jan Suraaj spokesperson Pavan Verma on Sunday raised serious questions over the Bihar government’s recent direct cash transfers to women beneficiaries, alleging that the move may have been politically motivated ahead of the implementation of the Model Code of Conduct.

Addressing the media, Verma referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s earlier criticism of “revadi” (freebie) politics. He said, “The Prime Minister himself criticised the ‘Rewari’. And now what happened in Bihar?”.

Verma further claimed that Bihar is already burdened with rising debt. “Currently, Bihar’s public debt is approximately Rs 4,06,000 crore. Its daily interest is Rs 63 crore,” he said, expressing concern over the state’s financial health.

#WATCH | Delhi | Jan Suraaj spokesperson Pavan Verma says, “The Prime Minister himself criticised the ‘Rewari’… And now what happened in Bihar?… Currently, Bihar’s public debt is approximately Rs 4,06,000 crores. Its daily interest is Rs 63 crores… We have information,… pic.twitter.com/kcqOno1ZTE
— ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2025

He also alleged irregularities in the source of funding for the scheme, stating, “We have information, which may be incorrect, that Rs 21,000 crore came from the World Bank for some other project. Just an hour before the model code of conduct was implemented, Rs 14,000 crore were withdrawn and Rs 10,000 each was allocated to 1.25 crore women.”

“If this is true, the question arises: how ethical is this?” Verma asked, adding that governments may later justify such decisions post-elections.

Extending the criticism to national politics, Verma said the issue was not limited to Bihar. “There will be elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and BJP-ruled states. They can make promises and then hand over cash,” he said.

Reacting to the party’s defeat, Verma acknowledged that Jan Suraaj also made miscalculations. “We made mistakes, too. Perhaps our ambition was too high for a new party, but our message was right. The response was very good,” he said.