Bihar: ‘Parivarvaad’ Blooms in Ruling BJP-led NDA, and in Opposition Mahagathbandhan

Patna: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is president of Janata Dal-United, are star campaigners of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance during ongoing election campaign, are repeatedly attacking Opposition Mahagathbandhan for parivarvaad (dynasty), but the fact is that the NDA is steeped in it as well.

Interestingly, Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president J P Nadda have been talking against parivarvaad when nearly a dozen ruling dynastic NDA candidates, are in the fray. What has raised eyebrows is that Modi maintained total silence on parivarvaad when he visited a few parliamentary constituencies in Bihar to campaign for NDA candidates belonging to dynasty in first, second and third phase of seven- phase polls. Polling for the third phase will be held on may 7.

Going by the ground reality, dynasty politics, locally known as parivarvaad is blooming in NDA as well as the Mahagathbandhan.

Contrary to much hyped parivarvaad of Lalu Prasad-Rabri Devi (Rashtriya Janata Dal and his wife and former Chief Minister, respectively), there are over a dozen of such political families in Bihar. Lalu-Rabri may be most powerful political family in the state, but several sons, daughters, brothers, wives, brothers in-law and close relatives of political families are contesting elections.

For instance, BJP has fielded Vivek Thakur from Nawada parliamentary constituency, the son of veteran party leader and former Union minister C P Thakur, who belongs to powerful Bhumihar upper caste.

Sushil Kumar Singh, BJP's incumbent MP from Aurangabad parliamentary constituency, is seeking re-election and is hoping for fourth consecutive victory, twice as a BJP candidate and once as a JD-U candidate (2009, 2014 and 2019). He is the son of Ram Naresh Singh alias Lutan Singh, a former MP, and belongs to a powerful political family of Aurangabad, known as Chittorgarh of Bihar for dominance of two upper caste Rajput families -- former CM Satyendar Narain Singh and Lutan Singh -- since over six decades.

BJP's candidate in Patna Saheb is former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, son of former Bihar Minister Thakur Prasad, known for his close association with the RSS or Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Other BJP's candidates belonging to dynasty are Shivesh Ram, candidate from Sasaram parliamentary seat Shivesh Ram, son of former Union minister Munni Lal, Sanjay Jaiswal, son of former MP Madan Jaiswal, is seeking re-election from West Champaran, Ashok Yadav, son of BJP veteran and former Union minister Hukum Deo Narayan Yadav, is seeking re-election from Madhubani seat.

BJP's allies like Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) headed by Chirag Paswan, Hindustani Awam Morcha of former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party of former Union minister Upendra Kushwaha are all family parties.

LJP (Ram Vilas) has fielded Arun Bharti in Jamui, (reserved for Scheduled Castes), who also belongs to the parivarvaad category, as he is the brother-in-law of Chirag Paswan.

Bharti, who is contesting for the first time, is also the son-in-law of LJP founder and former Union Minister late Ram Vilas Paswan, a Dalit leader. Bharti's mother was a Congress MLA and MLC.

The Jamui incumbent MP, Chirag Paswan, has shifted to Hajipur, a traditional stronghold of his late father.

LJP has fielded Sambhavi Choudhary from Samastipur, the daughter of senior JD-U leader and Bihar minister Ashok Choudhary. Similarly, LJP candidate Veena Devi, wife of JD-U leader and former MLC, is seeking re-election from Vaishali seat.

BJP's ally HAM fielded Manjhi as NDA’s candidate in Gaya seat. Manjhi's HAM is headed by his elder son Santosh Kumar Suman, who is a minister in the NDA government led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Suman is also an MLC. Manjhi's samdhan (son's mother-in-law) Joyti Devi is HAM’s MLA from Barachatti assembly seat in Gaya. His younger son is also active in the party and is likely to contest the Bihar Assembly elections in 2025.

Manjhi, 79, is a clear example of ‘parivarvaad’ of BJP’s ally.

What has raised eyebrows is that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, president of JD-U, a major ally of BJP, who takes pride in public while claiming that no one from his family is in politics and he never promoted any one, not even his son, is keeping mum over his party candidates belonging to dynasty families.

JD-U has fielded Lovely Anand, wife of former MP Anand Mohan Singh, a criminal-turned-politician, from Sheohar seat. Singh was released last year after 16 years in jail. He was convicted for lynching an IAS officer G Krishnaiah in the mid-1990s.JD-U's other candidates in the same category are Sunil Kumar, son of former minister Baidnath Mahto from the Valmikinagar seat,

Unlike Modi and Nitish Kumar, Opposition top leaders, including Lalu Prasad, are also promoting parivarvaad, as his two daughters are contesting polls and his two sons and wife are already in active politics. He has fielded his two daughters -- Misa Bharti from Patliputra and second daughter Rohini Acharya from Saran.

RJD has also fielded Kumar Sawarjit from Gaya. He is a former minister and party MLA from Bodh Gaya and son former MP Rajesh Kumar. Other RJD candidates belonging to parivarvaad are Shahnawaz Alam, son of former Union minister Mohammad Taslimuddin, from Araria, Sudhakar Singh, son of former minister and RJD state president Jagdanand Singh, from Buxar and Alok Mehta, son of former minister Tulsi Das Mehta, from Ujiyarpur seat.

Congress has fielded Sani Hazari, son of senior JD-U leader and Bihar minister Maheshwar Hazari from Samastipur. Veteran Congress leader and former Union minister Meira Kumar's son Ansul Avijit has been fielded from Patna Saheb and Congress state president Akhikesh Singh’s son Akash Singh is the party’s candidate from Maharajganj seat.