Bihar: Straws in the wind and the ECI’s indifference

The biennial Bihar legislative council elections (Friday, 23 October) saw a fiercer fight than ever before.

Ordinarily, the election for eight seats — four each from the graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies — would not have raised much heat and dust. An overcrowded field with the Jan Suraaj, Congress, RJD and Left parties in the fray against the Janata Dal (U) only partly explains the intense campaigning, road shows and media frenzy.

For chief minister Samrat Choudhary and the NDA, the elections are a small but significant political test, especially with Prashant Kishor having wrested the Bankipur seat (held by the BJP since 1995) in the by-elections earlier this year.

JD(U) founder Nitish Kumar was, however, conspicuous by his silence during the campaign. Party strongman and MLA from Mokama Anant Singh alias ‘Chhote Sarkar’ claimed that the former chief minister was indifferent to the outcome of the elections. Nitish did not even try to dissuade him from campaigning against JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar — the party nominee from the Patna graduates’ constituency — and supporting Jan Suraaj candidate Dr Anuj Singh against him.

Both Anant Singh and Neeraj Kumar hail from Mokama, but there’s no love lost between them. Singh claims Kumar has always tried to trip him up in politics. He swore that not only would he ensure Kumar’s defeat, he would make a comeback impossible. When Kumar got himself hospitalised, Singh called it ‘drama’. (Sure enough, when he was wheeled out, the ‘invalid’ said he was fit as a fiddle.)

Chhote Sarkar also declared that his loyalty to Nitish Kumar was beyond question. “After all,” he said, “who got nine people killed to help Nitishji?” The explosive claim spread like viral fire and was amplified by the Opposition. Belatedly grasping the grave legal and political implications of his statement, he made a U-turn and claimed his words had been twisted. What he meant was: nine of his associates had been killed because of his loyalty to Nitish Kumar.

He did not, however, deny helping loot votes for Nitish. “I managed to get three lakh votes by capturing booths at Nitishji’s behest,” he bragged.

Anant Singh’s outrageous statements have largely been ignored by the state’s political parties. “Netas are shying from making any direct comment because of his stranglehold over Kurmis, his caste men. He is also a dreaded don and still faces dozens of criminal cases,” said a bureaucrat by way of explanation.

Singh has represented the Mokama Assembly segment since 2005. Political observers say he considers it his ‘pocket borough’. Any aspiring leader (irrespective of political party) who wishes to contest from this region must have his blessing.

The JD(U) has also played it safe, refusing to condemn or take action against Anant Singh initially, though it later expelled him and wife for six years. It also authorised Union minister and Munger MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh to broker a reconciliation, but the bid apparently failed. Even party loyalists said JD(U) was too weak to take any decisive action. The moment for the party to be wound up may come sooner rather than later, they fear.

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Pre-election videos circulated on social media showed religious books being distributed to voters with cash-stuffed envelopes tucked inside. While the videos are not, in themselves, proof of a ‘cash-for-votes’ scandal, what set people talking was the complete indifference of the Election Commission of India. It would have been easy for the ECI to investigate and find out the truth, said a lawmaker. Rather than probe the allegations and take action, the ECI looked the other way.

Why are we not surprised?