Anti-incumbency, the return of ‘Jungle Raj’, economic difficulties in the time of the crown and widespread unemployment: there are many problems and priorities vary from district to district and also depending on the historical inclination of the voter, often based on castelines.
“Nitish Kumar built this road and I win with it, should I be eternally grateful for this?” asks Prem Kumar, who owns a small bread shop in Faridpur village on Son-Canal Road, aged four, which runs from Patna to Arwal and Jehanabad. This village is in the Vikram constituency of the Patna district. “What happened to his demand for special status for the state? More central funds could have helped the state, ”adds Kumar, a caste group from the Chandravanshi Kahar CBO.
“Recently the government has planted trees on the government land adjoining this road that was previously leased to farmers and there is widespread anger over this. God knows why he is doing all this just before the elections, ”Kumar wonders as he says he will vote for the candidate for Congress.
He adds that while he is angry at the CM, his voting preference is based on the candidate rather than any party inclination. Kaushal Kumar Sharma, a Bhumihar farmer from the same village, disagrees and mentions that no one would venture on this path at night during ‘Jungle raj’. “The current generation does not understand our struggle during those days when the rule of law did not exist in the state,” he laments.
Sharma says he’s displeased with Congress for not competing alone (the seat was won by Congress in 2015), but admits the party may have an advantage this time, too. “Everyone would have voted for the BJP if the party had given Anil Kumar the ticket. It’s not like that? he asks Kumar, who prefers not to answer. “His first term established Nitish Kumar as Vikash Purush, but it has been 15 years now,” says Jaleshwar Paswan from the nearby village of Vaigwan. “We will vote for change,” he adds.
“This time, Paswans and Yadavs are together in Bikram,” adds Lal Babu Yadav from the same village. When asked about the Paswan community’s support for the Chirag Paswan LJP, Ravindra Paswan, another village resident, said that Chirag is popular across all castes, but that his party has not put forward any candidates in Vikram, which that could have displaced Paswan’s votes.
The claim appears to hold up in nearby Paliganj constituency, where LJP’s Usha Vidyarthi is likely to win both Paswan and advanced caste votes. The call for change resonates in Paliganj, where Mahagathbandhan CPI (ML) candidate Sandeep Saurav, former general secretary of the JNU student union, appears to be the frontrunner. Both seats were also won by the alliance in 2015 (Vikram-Congress and Paliganj-RJD) and have a significant presence of CPI (ML) votes.
Lal Mohan Chauhan, a Naunia, an extremely backward breed, has a shop in the Paliganj market. He is outraged by the government’s ban on Durga Puja mela. “Everyone in this market could have benefited from that. Although there is no crown for the rallies, the common man is forbidden to earn a living, ”he adds.
“I think he (CM) is older and that is why he blames Bihar’s distance from seaports for the lack of development,” he says while acknowledging his preference for the CPI candidate (ML). “I paid 2,000 rupees for a bus ticket from Gurgaon to Bihar and what did I get? I have been unemployed ever since, ”says Ramshankar Verma (a Kushwaha) from Rakasa village in Paliganj.
“I was in my 30s when Nitish jee became prime minister. I am now in my 50s. My youth is wasted, but what about the youth of the state? Nitish Jee’s vikas ended with roads and electricity and conditions have certainly improved, but why is unemployment so widespread in the state? ”.
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