Patna (Bihar) , September 26 (ANI): The Jan Suraj Party has changed its candidate for the Tirhut Teachers' MLC election, fielding Shyam Nandan Kumar Yadav in place of the earlier nominee. The party said the change was made after objectionable remarks about teachers were made by the previous candidate during a meeting in Muzaffarpur, which the party found unacceptable.

Announcing the new candidate, Jan Suraaj State President Manoj Bharti said, "Based on the messages we received from our workers, the party decided that for the teacher elections in the Tirhut region, we are nominating our candidate, Shyam Nandan Kumar Yadav ji." Bharti spoke about Yadav's background, noting his family's history of social service and sacrifice.

"They live in the Kudni block. Their younger brother, martyr Pramod Yadav, attained martyrdom in the Kargil War and was also awarded the Sena Medal. Since then, this family has done a lot of work, including running a school and a training institute," he said, adding that Yadav is currently working as a principal, serves as the state secretary of an association of teachers' training colleges, and is also the state vice-president of the Petroleum Dealers Association in Bihar.

Speaking after being named the candidate, Shyam Nandan Yadav expressed his gratitude to the party for the opportunity. "I thank Jan Suraj for giving me the opportunity to contest the MLC election. I served in the Indian Army for 18 years, and my brother was martyred in the Kargil War. My family has long been associated with social work. I am not contesting this election merely to become an MLC, but to serve as a worker who will raise everyone’s voice," he said.

Jan Suraj National Spokesperson Saurav Kumar explained the circumstances behind the candidate change, stating the controversial statement and how that limit shouldn't have been crossed. "There was a line, a certain phrase put forward by our colleague Bhushan ji in Muzaffarpur yesterday, which had an important line in it, and a very controversial one at that, where he said, 'What do teachers have? They just care about filling their stomachs,' is just unacceptable, he stated. 

Saurav said, adding that such a remark was unacceptable given that the party is contesting the election in four teachers' constituencies. Saurav said the party strongly objected to the comment and clarified that Jan Suraj was not contesting merely to win seats.  "Whether we praise them or criticise teachers, Jan Suraaj's clear belief is that we aren't here to win any elections. On behalf of our party, we strongly object to what was said about teachers," he said. 

He further said the party remained committed to teachers' welfare, citing its three-point demand on issues such as the 7th Pay Commission and structural reforms, and reiterated that the party would continue to condemn any objectionable remarks against the teaching community going forward. (ANI)