“Ye chunav mukhiya ya pradhan ka nahi…desh ke pradhan mantri ka hain…jaat-paat se uth kar vote kijiye,” Ravi Shankar Prasad, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for Bihar’s Patna Sahib, reminds a group of Yadav voters.
Yadavs, considered a core vote base for the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), deserted the party in the 2019 elections. The RJD did not win a single seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. But five years later, the swelling crowd in Tejashwi Yadav’s rallies is making the party hopeful. In Patna Sahib, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), which the RJD is a part of, has put up Anshul Avijeet, the Congress spokesperson as its candidate. Avijeet now identifies himself as Anshul Avijeet Kushwaha. He has promised to make Patna a world-class city, with free bus rides for women, civic and health amenities if voted to power. Caste and employment are, however, the big talking points.
“Earlier, we used to prepare for police and para military/military jobs. Ever since the Agniveer scheme has been launched, this avenue of employment is also gone. Agniveer only gives you a job for four years. It can’t be a long-term option,” Vikas Kumar, a young voter from Diara village across River Ganga tells News18.
A pipa pul or a temporary bridge connects these villages to Patna. Rakesh Rai points out that every neta has promised a permanent bridge, but a boat on Ganga remains their only option so far.
“Shaam 6 baje ke baad Patna se Diara aaa matlab jang (war) ladne ke barabar hai. Koi bimar pad jaye to itna mushkil ho jaata hai hospital le jaana…sawa-bhado mein naav ke doobne ka khatra rehta hai…fir bhi bachche school isi raste jaate hain,” he says.
Across the river, the J P Setu connecting Patna to Sonepur, the Atal Path creating a bypass around Patna, a youth hangout ‘Marine Drive’ are all showcased by Prasad as infrastructural developments in Bihar’s capital city. “I have brought Metro to Patna, a new airport has been commissioned, Atal Path, Patliputra Path, J P Setu all are proof of Modi government’s commitment to change the face of Patna. More will be done once we come back,” Prasad told News18.
On the boat ride from Digha to Diara, sharab bandi or liquor prohibition was the other big talking point. “Kaun bola hai ki sharab band hai? Sab peekar pade rehte hain. Gareeb ko utha kar le jaati hai police, ameer paisa de deta hai,” Munni Devi, who was going back after selling her produce of vegetables in Patna, told News18.
JDU spokesperson Nikhil Mandal acknowledged that prohibition has not worked on ground as was envisaged. “All parties in Bihar Vidhan Sabha had come together to debate, discuss and pass the prohibition bill. But no government alone can implement it 100% till people come together to participate and ensure the success of the scheme,” he said.
PATLIPUTRA
In the Patliputra seat adjoining Patna, the demands are even more basic. Misa Bharti is taking on Ram Kripal Yadav in Patliputra. At the Alampur village, Misa asks why even something as basic as water supply could not be ensured by Ram Kripal Yadav who has won from this seat five times, thrice from the RJD and last two times on a BJP ticket.
“Pani jaisi bunayidi cheez bhi sansad mahoday nahi dilwa sake to inhone aakhir kya vikas kiya hai? Hum aayenge to 200 unit free bijli, pani aur mool bhoot suvidhaon ke liye aapko bhatakna nahi padega,” Misa tells a crowd after meandering through the narrow by-lanes of the area.
Gudiya, a young widow, tells News18, “I didn’t get the money to build a toilet even though am told it was part of the government scheme. I am a widow. I have two small children. Village males mock me when we go out in the morning. But what do I do? I have no toilet, no water in my house.”
Some of the assembled women have got the free gas cylinder under Ujjwala Yojna. They have all also benefited from the Union government’s Rs 2,000 direct transfer scheme, but jobs are what they seek.
“All young boys leave the village. We have no employment opportunities here. We should get jobs,” Meena told News18.
Misa Bharti, at her campaign rallies, reminds voters that it was Tejashwi Yadav who ensured five lakh government jobs the moment he was sworn in. “Tejashwi has promised that we will bring more government jobs if our government is made,” Misa says.
Ram Kripal Yadav and BJP workers credit Nitish Kumar, the Chief Minister, for the five lakh jobs. Ram Kripal, who is called chacha by Misa, says the Lalu family behaves like royalty and people realise that. “I have worked relentlessly and stayed amid the people here. Unke sukh-dukh mein hum saath rahe hain. These people stay in Delhi and appear only in election time. The janta is with us,” Ram Kripal, who won thrice on an RJD ticket and last two times in the Modi wave, says.
As politicians debate and counter each other, Chaudhary Shiv Pratap Singh, a Jat from Bhakhtiyarpur area of Patna Lok Sabha seat, fires the parting shot. “Sadak aur suraksha dono Patna mein badal gaya hai. In last 10 years, no communal riots have happened in Bihar. Under Nitish ji, there is no kidnapping or extortion raaj. Law and order has to be kept in mind,” he says.
