New Delhi: Barely 10 days after a clear electoral setback in the Assembly elections in Bihar, former chief minister Rabri Devi has been asked to vacate the official residence on 10, Circular Road, Patna, which has been home to Lalu and Rabri Devi and their family for nearly two decades.

The former Bihar CM was served notice on Tuesday (November 25) by the Building Construction Department (BCD), and allotted a new official bungalow – 39, Harding Road.

The Hindu reported that the new allotment is in accordance with a 2019 Patna high court ruling which had quashed “lifetime bungalow allocations for former chief ministers as misuse of public funds”.

However, Devi’s daughter Rohini Acharya, who lives in Singapore now, accused the Nitish Kumar government for “targeting her family to insult Lalu Prasad”.

“This is the development model of suhasan babu (referring to chief minister Nitish Kumar). Insulting Lalu Prasad Yadav, the messiah of crores of people, is his first priority. The party (NDA) may throw him out of his home, but how will you take him out of the hearts of Bihar’s people?” she wrote in a post on X.

“If not for his health, at least respect Lalu's political stature,” she added.

The 10 Circular road residence was allotted to Devi when she was the chief minister and has been the venue for many party meetings and discussions over the years.

The letter and Acharya’s social media post came on the same day as Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary took charge of the state home department and sounded a warning that the “bulldozer” was ready for the “mafia members”.

“The bulldozer is ready. We have made a list of 400 mafia members and action will be taken,” he announced as he assumed office, The Tribune reported.

He also made claims to tighten security in Bihar’s jails and warned of action against those abusing others on social media. “I want to know how mobiles find their way inside jails,” he said. 

According to the report, the elevation of Choudhary as home minister has caused discomfort for the opposition. “This is not the Nitish government that existed before the Assembly polls. Now the Home Department is with the BJP, and you will see fake encounters and bulldozer use frequently,” CPI-ML general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya told The Tribune.

The newly-formed Bihar cabinet will hold its first assembly session from December 1 to 5, during which the newly elected MLAs will be sworn in and a new speaker will be elected.

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