Gaya (Bihar) [India], March 23 (ANI): Former Bihar Chief Minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi, irked over an alleged attack on his niece Kesari Devi and other family members, said that he would have killed attackers if such an incident had taken place with him.

Patna Dec 27 PTI Days after courting a controversy with his remark against Brahmins Hindustani Awam Morcha HAM chief Jitan Ram Manjhi on Monday hosted a feast for members of the community as well as Dalits which however went awry when some of the upper caste attendees claimed that they were manhandled by supporters of his party Earlier this month the former CM earned the wrath of the community when he stated that Brahmins visited houses of Mahadalits but didnt eat food there and instead ask for money In a statement issued on Thursday HAM announced that it would hold a feast -- Brahmin-Dalit Ekta Bhoj -- at Manjhis residence It however insisted that only those Brahmins who have never consumed meat or liquor made no attempt of theft or dacoity should be attending the banquet People were served Chura flattened rice curd tilkut sweet made of sesame seeds and vegetable preparations for the feast A ruckus however erupted when one of the Brahmin attendees alleged that he was manhandled by supporters of HAM Many others too levelled similar allegations Talking to reporters outside the former CMs residence Yash Raj one of the Brahmin leaders said We did not like the way food was served to us When we raised objections we were manhandled by Manjhis supporters If they have no respect for us why invite us We boycotted the bhoj and left the place The HAM chief was among those serving food to the attendees Manjhi put conditions before our people Who is he to ask us what we eat and what we dont Manjhi is not an authority All those Brahmins who raised this matter at the programme were manhandled by HAM supporters Yash Raj claimed Despite attempts Manjhi and HAM leaders could not be reached for comment PTI PKD RMS RMS

Patna Dec 22 PTI Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi who sparked a row by using an expletive against Brahmins a few days back is facing a backlash from the influential community whose members have moved courts against the leader with one of them even announcing a reward of Rs 11 lakh for chopping off his tongue Manjhis use of swear word came to light on Sunday when a video went viral on social media where the 77-year-old leader was shown holding forth on the pitfalls of growing ritualism among Dalits at a function Himself a Dalit Manjhi later sought to wriggle out of the predicament with his trademark equivocation but ended up tying himself in knots Members of various Brahmin outfits have moved the court in West Champaran Siwan Saran Katihar and Samastipur districts demanding that the Hindustani Awam Morcha HAM president be booked under relevant sections of the IPC Manjhi changed tack numerous times since the episode came to light initially claiming that he had used the word haraami bastard to admonish his own Mushar community and that it was not directed against Brahmins Faced with the possibility of angering his Dalit brethren he did a volte face saying he stood by his remarks where he had sought to toe the line of B R Ambedkar by denouncing priestcraft In his latest statement Manjhi attempted a dilution of stance and asserted that his cuss word was indeed directed at Brahmins who ate meat and drank alcohol while pretending to be holier than thou Incidentally the former chief minister has been quite candid about his fondness for non-vegetarian food and often voiced his disapproval of prohibition in the state much to the embarrassment of the Nitish Kumar government in which his son Santosh Suman is a minister Gajendra Jha a BJP leader in Madhubani announced a reward of Rs 11 lakh for anyone who chopped off the tongue of the former chief minister The BJP acted quickly and expelled Jha whose open threat mimicked the fatwas for which it attacks Islamists The party insiders feel would not have liked to antagonise Dalits by not acting against its own leader who was seen as being too aggressive while targeting Manjhi PTI NAC SK SK

Patna (Bihar) [India], December 19 (ANI): Former Bihar chief minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi on Sunday clarified that the derogatory word used by him referred to his own community and not pundits.

Patna Dec 19 PTI Bihars outspoken former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi has ended up with his foot in the mouth much to the embarrassment of the ruling NDA in the state of which he is a partThe Hindustani Awam Morcha HAM leader who is on the wrong side of 70 is in news for having blurted an expletive against Brahmins while making a clumsy attempt at Dalit radicalism on Saturday nightAt a function of Bhuiyan-Musahar community the most backward among Dalits Majhi sought to admonish Dalits for taking up rituals of caste Hindus by whom he claimed they continue to be looked down uponHe however backtracked later asserting he had used that word to fellow Dalits to instil self-respect in themVideo footage of the function has gone viral on social media in which Manjhi a party-hopper who now heads his own outfit HAM can be heard uttering the word haraami bastard for the priestly class who according to him refuse to take food offered by Dalit clients but have no qualms in accepting cash from themHis ungainly attempt at perhaps doing an Ambedkar or a Kanshi Ram has put Manjhi whose son is a minister in the Nitish Kumar government in a tight spotBrahmins a large section of whom may take offence to the indiscreet remark are by and large supporters of the BJP the largest constituent of the NDA to which Manjhi owes his belated prominenceA former sidekick of Kumar by whom he was nominated for the highest seat of power in the state in 2014 Manjhi found his standing soar when Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that his unceremonious removal next year was an insult to the MahadalitShivanand Tiwary the Brahmin face of opposition RJD denounced the use of the intemperate ion 2014 by Manjhi while offering a socialist interpretationWhen some people complained to Gandhi about Ambedkars harshness in criticizing caste Hindus the Mahatma had said it was a surprise that Dalits were not getting violent given the long history of inhuman treatment meted out to them Tiwary saidMoreover Manjhi has a point when he attacks Hindu ritualistic and priestcraft These things have caused many Dalits to embrace other faiths said the RJD national vice-presidentThe BJP though understandably unhappy seems unwilling to join the issue with Manjhi wary of upsetting social equations in a state where it is less formidable than elsewhere in the Hindi heartlandThere should be social harmony Nobody should make unsavoury remarks about any community was the tepid response of senior BJP leader and minister Nitin Nabin whose comments were sought by journalistsMeanwhile Manjhi has characteristically come out with a sheepish disavowalI used the word haraami for my fellow Dalits to instil in them some self-respect I did not use the word for Brahmins said Manjhi much to the bemusement and bewilderment of scribes PTI NAC NN NN

Jharkhand : After the death of a Bihari laborer in the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the politics has heated up. While Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav has blamed the Nitish government for this incident, former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi made a different demand from PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the end of such terror in Kashmir. Jitan Ram Manjhi tweeted, “Our unarmed Bihari brothers are being killed continuously in Kashmir due to which the mind is upset.

Jharkhand : After the death of a Bihari laborer in the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the politics has heated up. While Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav has blamed the Nitish government for this incident, former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi made a different demand from PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the end of such terror in Kashmir. Jitan Ram Manjhi tweeted, “Our unarmed Bihari brothers are being killed continuously in Kashmir due to which the mind is upset.

Jharkhand : After the death of a Bihari laborer in the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the politics has heated up. While Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav has blamed the Nitish government for this incident, former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi made a different demand from PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the end of such terror in Kashmir. Jitan Ram Manjhi tweeted, “Our unarmed Bihari brothers are being killed continuously in Kashmir due to which the mind is upset.