By M Reyaz, TwoCircles.net,
Sahebganj/Vaishali: At a rally in Sahebganj in Muzaffarpur District (under Viashali Constituency) Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) Supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav arrived almost two hours late that originally scheduled time of 3 PM (normal for all leaders in election season with hectic schedule). His supporters though braved the scorching Sun taking refuge in water-melon and shadow of tree, but waited to listen to their leader.
As we talked to people at the ground of government school in Rampur village in Sahebganj, many youth appeared impatient, even pointing that its high time “we should have a change,” many even believing that “NaMo can bring development.” Ask them who they will vote for, these youth wanted to keep their cards closed to their chest. “Let’s see, we will decide in consultation with the elders in the family,” a young Yadav voter said.
Lalu Prasad Yadav
The erstwhile capital of perhaps the first Republic of Licchavi State, Vaishali is also famous the world over for being the birth place of 24th and last Teerthanker Mahaveer Jain. Even Gautama Buddha spent some time here on his way to Bodh Gaya.
Vaishali Lok Sabha comprises of six Assembly constituencies, five of which are part of Muzaffarpur District, except Vaishali Assembly seat: Minapur, Kanti, Baruraj, Paroo and Sahebganj.
Prof. Raghuvansh Prasad Singh
As the general elections for the 17th Lok Sabha reaches the last lap, the election outcome at the birth-place of democracy appears to be decided based on the caste equations and which ways particular communities tilts. They say, “A Rajput will die but will not give out his girl or vote outside his caste.” Famous for Rajputs, it is true for most communities in the region, where “they don’t simply cast their votes but vote their castes.”
Senior RJD leader Professor Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, who is a Rajput himself, has been winning this seat from 1996 consecutively as he manages to get the sizeable votes of his communities besides the traditional YM (Yadav-Muslim) voters of the RJD.
Prof. Raghuvansh Prasad Singh (front), Dr Iqbal Sami (back) and others.
This time, however, there appears to be larger consolidation of upper caste Hindu voters behind BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. BJP ally Lok Jan Shakti Party (LJP) of Ram Vilas Paswan too has fielded a Rajput Rama Singh, and this may lead to the vote divide. JDU rebel and wife of muscleman Munna Shukla, Annu Shukla is believed to cut into the Bhumihar votes of the constituency.
Vaishali constituency has sizeable Scheduled Caste votes too although never a Dalit has won this seat. If Dalits votes could galvanize behind Vijay Sahni of JDU, he may create history, although that seems unlikely at the moment.
Meanwhile, as the helicopter of Lalu Prasad Yadav arrived people turned back to see – not so much the leaders but the chopper landing. The charismatic former Chief Minister might have become subdued after he came out of Jail on bail, but that has not deterred his confidence. In his own inimitable style the Yadav icon of Bihar claimed, “After winning 34 seats, I have come to Vaishali,” adding he will win all the 40 Lok Sabha seats of Bihar. Most of his speech was same rhetoric against BJP prime ministerial candidate, holding him responsible for the 2002 Gujarat riots and taking dig at “hypocrisy” of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar for parting ways with BJP.
‘When riots occur anywhere Muslims turn to Lalu Prasad not Bukhari’
Before the RJD Supremo had arrived, several leaders took on the dais to appeal to voters to not get swayed and divide the vote that would eventually help the BJP. State Spokesperson of RJD, Dr Iqbal Sami roared, “when riots occur anywhere Muslims turn to Lalu Prasad Yadav not to (Imam) Bukhari,” pointing to the “confidence” Muslims have in him. Exaggerated though, that appears to be the current political reality for Muslims in the state, where Lalu Prasad has emerged as an anchor to consolidate voters to prevent the BJP upsurge.
There were Dalit leaders also on the stage who spoke of how Lalu Prsad gave voice to the backward people and urged them vote for the RJD candidate. When TCN asked the RJD candidate Prof. Raghuvansh Prasad Singh on the anti-incumbency factor, he appeared confident saying that there is no competition for him. On the ground, however, there appeared some resentment among Yadav and Muslims against him for showing “favoritism” to his own Rajput community.
Thus RJD candidate is hoping that the larger vote-divide among his rivals as also YM consolidation may help him clinch victory for the sixth times in a row.
[Photos by Mudassir Rizwan, TwoCircles.net]