How Biharis in Pune view NDA’s election wipeout

He added, “What BJP did is that they did not highlight the period of Tejasvi Yadav but highlighted the period of Lalu Yadav from 20 years back. But the last 20 years have been your government, and instead of talking about their achievements, they have talked about the past. Anyway now that they have won I congratulate them. I feel they should focus on employment and not on doling out freebies. Pay three times the wages but make people work instead of giving things for free.”

Steel-industry professional Rajiv Kumar said, “Mujhe lag raha tha ki kaante ka takkar hoga (I thought it would be a close fight). Because it has been 20 years (of Nitish Kumar’s government). After 20 years there is anti-incumbency as well. But whatever has happened it is good. Jungle raaj won’t come back.” RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav’s government in Bihar is referred to as “jungle raaj” by critics referring to the poor law and order situation during the time.

On the kind of work that has occurred under Nitish Kumar, he said, “It is not like Bihar will become Maharashtra so quickly. It is happening slowly. When I go to my village there is a lot of difference in the systems here and there. If there is a small city, there is agricultural land surrounding it and the city is very crowded. Here, there is not that much of a crowd.”

He opined that migration was the big issue the new government should focus on. “Even if people get some small jobs they won’t come here. For people who get more salary or good jobs it’s a different thing. But someone coming here for Rs 10,000 to 15,000, in my view this is exploitation,” Singh said.

Shweta Singh, visiting law faculty at various law colleges in Pune, shared her opinion on the result by saying, “It was an expected result that BJP and JD(U) would win. Most of us who stayed in Bihar from quite some time, looking where Bihar has come as compared to the past, Nitish Kumar has done a good job. When we were kids it was not very safe, especially for people of the business class. Cities like Patna have developed. Politics previously was more inclined towards crime. And BJP has also done a pretty good job in other states where it is in government. So I hope their coming to power will bring more changes.”