A day after a CBI team investigating alleged irregularities in the UGC-NET exam was attacked in Nawada, Bihar, Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi, referencing ‘jungle raj’. This came weeks after Modi used the term to criticize the RJD.

“Mr. Prime Minister, witness the jungle raj in Bihar under your governance. The CBI team investigating the UGC-NET paper leak was attacked. A paper leak under your government, an attack on the CBI under your government, and you blame jungle raj on someone else?” Tejashwi Yadav remarked.

The term ‘jungle raj’ has often been used by RJD’s political opponents to describe the 15-year rule of the RJD in Bihar when Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri Devi were Chief Ministers.

During the election campaign, BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Modi, frequently used ‘jungle raj’ to criticize the RJD’s rule, asserting that the NDA government under Nitish Kumar rescued the state from a ‘dark era’. Tejashwi Yadav’s use of ‘jungle raj’ in relation to the attack on the CBI team serves as a sharp retort to the BJP’s critique.

The CBI team in Nawada was investigating alleged irregularities in the UGC-NET examination.

UGC-NET is a test to determine a candidate’s eligibility for assistant professor positions in universities and colleges and for awarding research fellowships. Amid protests over irregularities in the NEET-UG exam for medical admissions, the Education Ministry canceled the UGC-NET a day after it was held.

The exam, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), has been under scrutiny for irregularities in NEET. Over 11 lakh students registered for UGC-NET. The Education Ministry canceled the exam after receiving information that its integrity might have been compromised, prompting a CBI investigation.

The CBI team was attacked in Kasiyadih village, Nawada, while searching for suspects.

“A group of villagers gheroed, manhandled, and attacked a CBI team in Kasiyadih village, under Rajauli police station jurisdiction, around 4:30 pm on Saturday,” the Superintendent of Police’s office in Nawada stated.

“Upon receiving the information, a police team led by the SHO of Rajauli police station reached the scene, calmed the villagers, and brought the situation under control,” the statement added.

Police have registered a case and arrested four individuals in connection with the incident. The driver of the CBI vehicle sustained a minor injury.