Unsettled by Nitish Kumar flip-flops, JD(S)’s Lalan Singh banks on Modi in Bihar’s Munger

In fact, when questioned about his challenger from the RJD in a recent media interview, Singh skirted the question, saying he can only talk about his own work.

Apparently, Singh was caught by surprise when Nitish Kumar broke the alliance with the RJD and re-joined hands with the BJP, in January this year. As a voter put it, “Lalan Babu is unable to understand how to campaign. Till yesterday, he was abusing Modi and praising Lalu. Now, he is expected to do the opposite.”

However, if he does sail through, it will be due to the JD(U)-BJP alliance, given the anger against him among a significant section of voters in Munger over his performance during the current term.

“Lalan babu has done nothing for the constituency. Look at Bhagalpur and Begusarai. Both have developed so much. Munger is such an old city, but nothing has been done here. He keeps talking about Chandi Ma, but has done nothing to develop the Chandi-sthan here. If it were not for the JD(U) siding with the BJP, we would not vote for him, even if it meant voting for the RJD,” says Kalu Kumar, a tea seller from the Halwai (OBC) caste in town.

Another OBC, paan shop owner Deepak Chaurasia, has similar sentiments. “Even if Lalan Babu had got a little bit of work done here, he would have won by a record margin. Pichhle paanch saal mein Nitish Babu sirf bandh karwaye, khulwaye kuchh bhi nahi (Nitish Babu has only shut down factories here in the last five years, inaugurated nothing). The one factory (the gun factory) that was here, is also shut. We will still vote for Lalan Babu, but grudgingly,” he says.

Notably, Singh had lost the polls from here in 2014, when the JD(U) had contested on its own.

Singh’s challenger in the constituency is Anita Devi, the wife of convicted gangster-turned-politician Ashok Mahato. Mahato had shot to infamy in the 1990s with his gang, made up of Kurmis and Koeris (both OBC), picking up the gun against upper castes. The RJD is hoping that the Muslim-Yadav combine, a section of Dalits, along with a split in the Kurmi votes in the constituency will help its candidate win.

Munger Lok Sabha seat

Munger has around 18 lakh voters, around two lakh each of which are Yadav, Kurmi, Dhanuk (OBC), Bhumihar and Vaishya votes, while one lakh are Muslims, and 1.5 lakh are Rajputs. The rest are EBCs, Dalits, Brahmins and other castes.

While Yadavs and Muslims are rallying behind the RJD on the Assembly segments of Munger, Jamalpur and Lahkisarai, Bhumihars and other upper caste groups are supporting Singh, largely because of Narendra Modi. Among Dalits, Paswans are staunchly behind the BJP, but the rest appear split.

A section of Kurmis appear to be gravitating towards the RJD due to its Kurmi candidate, but the loyalty of the majority for Nitish Kumar is intact.

“What is the point of voting for Mahato’s wife? He is a convicted criminal. She has been fielded purely to split Kurmi votes. Nitish Kumar has brought development to the village. Some people have got jobs too,” says Shantakumar Mandal, a Kurmi from Aleempur village.

However, Mohit Kumar, a 22-year-old Kurmi student from the village, says although he will vote for Modi, some Kurmis are voting for Mahato because of caste allegiance.

Updesh Anand, another Kurmi student, makes his preference clear. “I like Rahul Gandhi. We have tested Modi for 10 years and nothing has happened in Bihar. There is neither any development nor any jobs here. Someone else must get a chance now,” he says.

There are others who have lost trust in everyone.

Vinod Sah of Dakra Nala village in Jamalpur has been running from pillar to post to get his son treated for an operation on his leg. He says doctors are asking for Rs 3 lakh, which he does not have. Even Ayushman Bharat has been of no help, he says. As a father of two daughters, he says “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” is just a slogan.

“The government should ideally make a fixed deposit in the name of daughters for their marriage. My other son is a graduate, but is forced to work as a security guard as there are no jobs,” he says.