There is a well-known saying in every Indian household: Even Ravan’s arrogance did not last. In the Bihar elections, voters have given meaning to this very saying.
First of all, congratulations to Nitish Kumar, who has assumed reins of the Chief Minister’s office for the tenth time. His opponents lost the chance to return to power. The Opposition kept alleging ‘vote theft’ before the elections and is still doing the same. The Rs 10,000 deposit into eligible women voters’ accounts has been termed as a bribe, but I believe it was all a part of the NDA’s strategy akin to the promise of at least one government job to somebody from each of Bihar’s 1.5 crore families.
The NDA went ahead and deposited Rs 10,000 into eligible women voters’ accounts with an assurance of an interest-free loan of Rs 2 lakh under the scheme. It is debatable whether such ‘loans’ are ever repaid or not. However, that said, the RJD meanwhile could neither communicate its message properly nor could it win the people’s trust. To add to it, Tejashwi Yadav went ahead and distributed tickets to members of his own caste infuriating other communities in a caste-conscious state. The accusations of ‘vote theft’ too had no impact at all.
In contrast, the BJP’s strategy was crystal clear and precise. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led from the front and visited Bihar seven times. The ‘Chanakya’ of the BJP, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, addressed 36 rallies while firebrand leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath spoke at 31 public meetings. A number of top NDA leaders from other states also set up camp in the election bound state of Bihar. Nitish Kumar too played his part by practically creating a record of sorts in public outreach. Described as the ‘patriarch’ of Bihar politics, Nitish Kumar made it a point to engage in direct contact with ‘his people’ on each day of campaigning, right from the morning till the evening.
Nothing could stop Nitish Kumar who took to the road when the weather played spoilsport and addressed all his scheduled rallies. Tejashwi Yadav, on the other hand, cancelled many events due to rains as his helicopter couldn’t take off. Both the BJP and the JDU had a ball publicising the visible difference in the campaigning of the two leaders telling people that while Tejashwi travelled by helicopters, Nitish was a chief minister who walked the ground. These optics definitely contributed in shaping voters’ perspective.
Tejashwi’s presumption that voters would want a change as Nitish had been in power for a long time, proved to be his undoing. This presumption filled him with arrogance and it began to show in his speeches. He even went so far as to declare that he would take oath as Chief Minister on November 18!
He began threatening officials, saying that after the elections each one of them would be ‘set right’. Taking a cue, other candidates of his party, too adopted a belligerent tone. Bhojpuri film star Khesari Lal Yadav, while addressing a public meeting said, he could even erase the lines drawn by Lord Brahma!
The NDA, it would seem, had anticipated Tejashwi’s aggressive posturing and strategically played a brilliant, if diabolical, move. Social media was soon flooded with reels reminding people of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s ‘jungle raj’. The aim obviously was to tell voters of what to expect if Tejashwi came to power. The underlying sentiment was that criminals would once again have an upper hand. The rallies taken out by the RJD only added fuel to the fire. These rallies created fear in the minds of many people and most certainly caused heavy damage to the prospects of the RJD. Yet, Tejashwi remained deluded in the belief that he was a ‘youth leader’ who was going to give Bihar a new direction. This despite the fact that his image as a youth leader had already been shattered by Prashant Kishor’s ‘ninth-grade fail’ narrative.
The Congress’ performance as an associate of the RJD in Bihar leaves little to debate on. The Grand Old Party contested on 61 seats and was reduced to an also ran, winning just 6 of them! It had emerged victorious in 19 seats during the previous elections. The ballot badly exposed the chinks in the Congress’ armour. The truth is always bitter but couldn’t be clearer for the party: It has been rudely woken up from a daydream! Why did Rahul’s rallies fail to make any impact in Bihar? Will this be examined? Congress had no strategy whatsoever. It will have to rethink its poll strategies from scratch. Even with reduced strength in the Lok Sabha or state legislature, it can still emerge as a strong voice of the Opposition. I often give the example of N K Premachandran, the MP from Kollam, who is the lone MP of the Revolutionary Socialist Party but extremely vocal. His voice commands respect in the Parliament.
Now let’s turn to Jan Suraaj! People were wondering how someone who helps others win elections could fail to win himself! There was widespread buzz that this time Prashant Kishor would work wonders — that he would come to power and steer Bihar in a new direction. Whenever someone asked him what future he saw for his party in the election, he would say, ‘either on the top, or at the bottom!’ His tone too carried a certain arrogance. Perhaps it was this arrogance that made voters say: “Prashant Babu, this time please stay at the bottom!” However, Prashant Kishor certainly succeeded in cutting into the Opposition’s votes. For the BJP, he turned out to be lucky.
Termites in Lalu’s household?
It was September 2019 when Lalu Prasad Yadav’s elder daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai walked out of the house crying, saying the family had mistreated her. The divorce proceedings with Tej Pratap Yadav are still underway. Earlier this year, in May, Lalu Yadav expelled his elder son Tej Pratap not only from the party but also from the house. After the election results, the daughter who had donated a kidney to Lalu walked out of the house crying as well, saying that she now has neither a family nor a party. She left for Singapore. She has made serious allegations against Tejashwi’s advisors Sanjay Yadav and Rameez. So, has the Lalu Yadav household truly been infested with termites? Only time will answer this question!The author is the chairman, Editorial Board of Lokmat Media and former member of Rajya Sabha.