Bihar polls begin today without a distinct wave

[1]

The first of Bihar’s six-phase Assembly polls is beginning on Thursday in 47 constituencies in eight impoverished north-eastern districts in an atypical political atmosphere marked by the absence of any distinct wave to dominate the voters’ hearts and minds as they choose who to vote for.

For the 1.77 crore registered voters in the Kosi belt and parts of Mithilanchal and Seemanchal areas ready to cast their votes in what is arguably Bihar’s most significant democratic exercise in recent decades, choosing a candidate has become a complex task due to an unprecedented multiplicity of parties and issues.
While the ruling JD(U) is contesting in 26 and its ally BJP in 21 of the 47 seats, the RJD is contesting in 31 seats and its ally LJP in 16 seats.
The Congress and the BSP are contesting in all the 47 seats while the NCP is contesting in 33 seats, the CPI-ML (Liberation) in 17, the CPI-M in seven, and the CPI in 11.
Unlike in the last Assembly polls in 2005, which were described as historic partly because they ended the RJD’s 15-year regime, there is no real dominant socio-political factor seemingly holding the electorate in its sway this time round. But the first phase of the polls, to be conducted at 10,454 polling stations to elect 47 MLAs from the 631 candidates in the fray including 52 women, are considered significant because of the high concentration of Muslims in most constituencies.
While chief minister and JD(U) stalwart is hopeful of improving the NDA tally in this region through the goodwill of his government’s development work with a pro-minority outlook and control over crime, his main rival and former RJD chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav is brimming with confidence due to the solid alliance with the LJP and the discontent among voters in this flood-prone part of Bihar for its chronic poverty, underdevelopment and mass migration.
But the multi-corner contests in each of the 47 constituencies, especially due to a resurgent Congress, could upset their calculations.
In the first phase of polls, spread over Saharsa, Madhepura, Madhubani, Supaul, Purnia, Araria, Katihar and Kishanganj districts, prominent politicians in the fray include Bihar Congress chief Mehboob Ali Kaiser, senior JD(U) ministers Vijendra Prasad Yadav, Narendra Narain Yadav and Renu Kumari, convicted former MP Pappu Yadav’s wife and Congress nominee Ranjeet Ranjan, and convicted former MP Anand Mohan’s wife and Congress nominee Lovely Anand.