Nothing captures the irony of the NDA’s Mithilanchal push in Bihar better than Jitwarpur, the village on the outskirts of Madhubani city, home to some of the finest exponents of the famed Mithila art, including three Padma Shri awardees.
Yet, the narrow road leading to Jitwarpur is broken, the monsoon has left it slushy, and there is no proper drainage or street lighting. Drinking water too is scarce.
Madhubani painter Diwakar Jha peels dried sugarcane sheaths as he laments the state of the village. “We have water on the streets but our taps are dry. I am better off because I have a handpump. Others struggle. The road here was last built in 2010, days before (Chief Minister) Nitish Kumar’s visit,” says Jha, adding that politicians often come here to be photographed with Madhubani artists, but nothing changes.
Sudina Devi, another artist, wishes the government would at least install streetlights. “Will anyone believe this is a village of artists?” she says, pointing to the slush and garbage on the streets.
Lakshmiya Devi, a Dalit exponent of Godana art, voices another complaint — the middlemen. “I take 15 days to make a painting but get only Rs 1,000 for it. I’m told it sells for thousands in Delhi and Mumbai,” she says.
According to Jha, the Madhubani art economy is “held hostage by traders”. “The government promotes Mithila art — the Finance Minister (Nirmala Sitharaman) even wore a Madhubani saree while presenting the Budget — but that hasn’t helped . Government exhibitions, where we can connect directly with buyers, barely happen now, and when they do, you need to pay bribes. There isn’t even a proper art market in Madhubani. The Mithila Haat was built in Jhanjharpur because a senior JD(U) leader is from there,” he adds.
Over the past couple of years, the NDA has been consistently showcasing its love for Mithila culture, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi frequently speaking in Maithili at rallies, and the BJP fielding folk singer Maithili Thakur from Alinagar in Darbhanga.
Mithilanchal, spread across districts like Madhubani, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, Saharsa, Madhepura, Katihar, Supaul and Muzaffarpur , accounts for more than 100 of Bihar’s 243 Assembly seats. One-third of the state’s 13 crore people speak Maithili.
On the ground, electoral choices seem driven by caste loyalties, Nitish Kumar’s welfare schemes, the “Lalu factor” — both for and against — and Hindutva.
At Jitwarpur, despite her frustration, Sudina Devi will vote for the NDA. “No matter what else he fails at, Modi built the Ram Temple (in Ayodhya). That’s enough reason for me,” she says.
Jha offers a more political reading. “If the NDA candidate here contests as an Independent, he won’t get even 20 votes. But people will vote for the NDA, either because they’re Modi ‘bhakts’ or because there’s no credible alternative,” he says.
Makhana belt
In the Neuri Tola of Gaura Bauram constituency in Darbhanga, Manoj Kumar Sahani, a Makhana farmer, says his earnings have plummeted. “I spend Rs 1 lakh per acre and get about seven quintals. Prices have dropped from Rs 31,000 to Rs 18,000 per quintal,” he adds.
In Darbhanga city, Anil Singh, proprietor of Aadya Agritech Pvt Ltd, which produces and trades in organic Makhana under the brand name Taal Makhana, says the sector remains unorganised, and is not convinced by the Modi government’s promise of a Makhana board. “Machines for harvesting and processing are still a problem… Even though there’s export potential, our trade linkages are poor,” he says.
However, Sahani admits that he plans to vote along lines of caste, rather than on farmer issues, for the Mahagathbandhan. The RJD-led coalition has announced Vikassheel Insaan Party chief Mukesh Sahani as its Deputy CM candidate.
In Rewa village of Muzaffarpur, fisherman Sugam Sahani echoes a similar paradox. “There’s no profit in fishing. The ones making money are those who own ponds and capital. We buy fish from them and sell it. That is why most Mallahs have shifted out of the traditional occupation,” he says.
But, he won’t vote for the RJD. “This government is fine. We have roads, free power, and peace. We don’t want those (the RJD’s) old days back.”
Other factors
The NDA’s most reliable supporters appear to be the women, many of whom are beneficiaries of Nitish Kumar’s welfare schemes, including the pre-poll transfer of Rs 10,000 to their accounts.
As Mohammed Gulab, a cycle cart-puller in Madhubani, puts it: “I have four votes at home. Two will go to the RJD, two to Nitish. My wife got Rs 10,000 in her account. Namak ka haq ada karna padega (will have to discharge one’s obligation),” he says.
Local electoral equations too are at play. In Darbhanga Rural, a split in Muslim votes between the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM and Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj — both have fielded Muslim candidates — is expected to help the NDA and has seemingly divided families. “My son works for the Jan Suraaj, but his mother and sister will vote for Owaisi. They say he’s the only one who seeks votes in Allah’s name. I’m voting for the RJD,” says Mushtaq Alam, a tea seller in Ramnagar, a Muslim-dominated village.
The NDA’s overt embrace of Mithila culture may not have transformed lives in the region. But with politics here shaped less by cultural pride and more by caste, welfare and faith, development might not win votes, but it hardly loses them either — a paradox that keeps the NDA comfortably afloat amid discontent.
