Sumit Singh & Syed Abubakr, TwoCircles.net
Patna (Bihar): The road to Siwan is cracked and dusty like old stories that still echo in this land. People remember former Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Syed Mohammad Shahabuddin here. They speak his name with a strange mix of pride and fear.
“He was not just a leader. He was our voice,” says Ayesha Khatoon, 42. She stands outside a small tea shop in Siwan town. Her eyes do not blink as she speaks.
But times are changing. Or at least, trying to.
A new voice is walking these roads now. His name is Prashant Kishor. His message is loud. His feet are steady. He calls it Jan Suraaj. And he wants to bring a “new kind of politics” to this land.
“There is only one atmosphere in Bihar, the atmosphere of change. People in Bihar want a change in the system, they want employment for their children and want freedom from the corrupt system here. Bihar has had enough of ‘Lalu-Nitish’ for 30-35 years, now Bihar needs a new rule, the rule of the people,” he said.
People listened. Some nodded. Others waited.
Siwan has seen too much. Don, dynasty, power and prison. Mohammad Shahabuddin ruled here, even from jail. Then he died. But his legacy stayed behind. In old posters. In loyal hearts. In whispers between chai (tea) sips.
His wife Hena Shahab ran in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as an independent candidate. She did not win. But she got 92,170 votes. That was almost the same as the margin between the winner and the RJD’s candidate. Her vote cut deep.
Now, she is back with the RJD. Along with her son Osama Shahab. It is not just a homecoming. It is a strategy. A way to win back Muslim votes before the next battle.
Prashant Kishor is not from Siwan. But he comes with purpose. He has walked across Bihar. 3,500 kilometres on foot. He meets people, listens and talks about education, jobs and health. He calls this the “Bihar Badlav Yatra”.
He does not want allies. He wants all 243 seats. On his own. “If Nitish Kumar is the face of (the ruling) NDA (National Democratic Alliance), then (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi or (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah should announce it. The people of Bihar want to know who will be the chief minister if the NDA government is formed,” he said.
He has no patience for old vote banks.
“Muslims must not remain politically bonded labourers,” he said. The crowd stirred when he said it.
RJD strikes back
RJD leaders did not sit quietly. They hit back.
“Prashant Kishor’s tall promises in Siwan are a distraction. His party failed miserably in the recent bypolls, and his rhetoric is designed to confuse voters. People of Siwan know who stands for them. It is our leader Tejashwi Yadav,” said RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari.
They call Jan Suraaj the BJP’s B-Team. They say Kishor is here to break the Muslim-Yadav bond. The one Shahabuddin once built.
The Jan Suraaj contested four bypoll seats last year. It did not win any. But it left a mark. In Imamganj (Gayaji district), its candidate polled over 37,000 votes. In Belaganj, it got 10% of the vote. Still, many call it a spoiler. A “vote katwa”. Not a winner.
Kishor saw it differently. He said it showed potential.
People hold the key
Shagufta Parveen is 29. She teaches at a local school. “I like that he wants to give women candidates a chance. Siwan needs new faces, but I am still deciding who to trust,” she says.
Amina Khatoon, 34, listens too. “Prashant Kishor talks about education and jobs, which we need in Siwan. But I am not sure if the Jan Suraaj can deliver,” she says.
Sanjay Yadav, 50, does not believe the talk. “Jan Suraaj is just talk. Tejashwi has experience. He has given jobs, and the RJD fights for people like us. I do not see Prashant Kishor winning here,” he says.
Rajesh Kumar, a shopkeeper, nods. “The RJD has been here. Kishor is new.”
But not everyone agrees. Sunita Devi is 50. She lives in Daraunda. “Every year, my sons go to Delhi or Mumbai for work. We want jobs here, better roads and hospitals that work. I have heard Prashant Kishor talk about stopping migration. Let us see if he delivers,” she says.
PK says he will give tickets to 40 Muslim and 40 women candidates. He speaks of jobs. Of better health care. Of schools.
But Siwan’s challenges are old. Migration. Floods. Bad roads. Empty hospitals. Broken trust.
Opinion polls say Jan Suraaj is still small. Just over 1% vote share. The RJD has 36%. The NDA has 49%.
Still, Kishor walks and speaks. Siwan is watching, listening and waiting.
The posters are going up again. The rallies are growing louder. The tea shops are filling with talk. People want change. But they also want proof.
Shahabuddin is gone. His memory has not. The RJD wants loyalty. The NDA wants power. The Jan Suraaj wants a beginning.
So, who will Siwan trust? Election day will answer
