Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday slammed the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar for awarding a plum contract to a company allegedly owned by a close relative of an MP belonging to the Chief Minister's JD(U).?

The former Union Minister cited a newspaper report which claimed a Rs 1,600 crore contract for the state's "free ambulance service", meant for the critically ill besides pregnant women and infants, was awarded to the company owned by the son of Jehanabad MP Chandeshwar Prasad Chandravanshi.?

“Going by the report, it appears the government awarded the contract to the company, ignoring red flags, to favour the ruling party MP. This is tantamount to a crime against the people of the state”, alleged Prasad.?

However, Chandravanshi asserted “I have nothing to do with the company. It is true, though, that members of my family run that company. The BJP cannot make a case against a political figure's family members doing business.?

“Many BJP leaders' family members are involved in different businesses. Moreover, the party was sharing power in the state when the contract was first awarded to the company".

-With PTI Input