Modi Mocks Rahul Fishing Stunt, Paints RJD Legacy Dark

At a campaign rally in Sitamarhi, Narendra Modi targeted Rahul Gandhi’s recent pond-fishing visit in Begusarai, describing it as “diving practice” while drawing a sharp contrast with his own and his alliance’s development narrative.

He quipped that while Bihar’s fishery sector had witnessed growth under the National Democratic Alliance, he now saw “some people practising diving in ponds” an oblique reference to Gandhi’s viral moment. The crowd responded with laughter as Modi extended his jibe, saying: “In the Bihar election, people are practising diving.”

Beyond the humour, the PM zeroed in on the larger message for voters: the need to choose development over what he termed the “Jungle Raj” legacy of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). He accused the party of glorifying crime and corruption among youth, citing slogans on RJD stages where children were reportedly saying they wanted to become extortionists. He asked pointedly: “Should a child of Bihar become an extortionist or a doctor?”

Modi recast himself as a “brand ambassador of Bihar’s art,” claiming to have gifted a Madhubani painting to an international dignitary, emphasising cultural pride alongside developmental rhetoric.

He also contrasted the NDA’s push for laptops, books and sporting ambitions, with what he described as the RJD’s talk of giving pistols and double-barrelled guns to youth. “Bihar needs startup, not ‘hands up’,” he said, referencing the infamous “hands up, surrender” crime-era iconography.

In the context of the multi-phase Bihar elections, Modi urged the electorate not to return to the past, but to vote for progress. He noted that earlier polling had already sent a “65-volt jhatka” to those associated with the RJD’s past governance.

As the campaign intensifies, the PM’s combination of satire, cultural appeal and a narrative of development vs. regression is shaping his pitch in the state. Whether the voters respond to the humour or heed the warning remains to be seen.