Opposition banks on don-turned-politician's influence to take fight to NDA in Bihar's Munger

Munger: The dark shadow of criminals-turned-politicians in Bihar politics has receded over the years but it looms over Munger as Anant Singh, an MLA and accused in numerous criminal cases, works to win a section of upper castes votes to spice up the contest between opposition candidate and his wife Neelam Devi and JD(U)'s Lalan Singh.
Political watchers said Lalan Singh, a confidant of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, should have been a clear favourite but the influence of Anant Singh in a section of Bhumihars, who are otherwise seen as a solid vote bank of the JD(U) ally BJP, may challenge the conventional political equations.

Spearheading his wife's campaign, Anant Singh, a three-term MLA, often tells voters that he has always been accessible to them and can get their work done while charging his rival with arrogance and inaccessibility.

Seeking to consolidate their votes and not letting local factors affect their poll prospects, top leaders of ruling National Democratic Alliance, including BJP president Amit Shah, have addressed rallies asking for votes in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi have extensively campaigned in the seat.

Both main contestants from the seat are Bhumihars, the largest caste here. Neelam Devi, who is fighting on the Congress ticket with the backing of Lalu Prasad-led RJD and Upendra Kushwaha-led RLSP among others, is mostly seen as a proxy for his husband.

JD(U) leader Niraj Kumar asserted that the opposition's ploy will not work in Munger, saying people will vote in the name of Modi and Kumar and noting that the Congress-RJD candidate had come a poor third in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

Incidentally, it was BJP ally and Lok Janshakti Party candidate Veena Devi, wife of another Bhumihar don-turned-politician Surajbhan Singh, who had won from here in 2014, defeating Lalan Singh. The JD(U) was then not a BJP ally.

"A majority of Bhumiahrs will vote for JD(U) as they want Narendra Modi to be prime minister again. But Anant Singh is an influential person who is more likely to help us than Lalan Singh. A section of Bhumihars in every village will vote for him but most will back JD(U) due to the BJP and Modi," a village head told PTI.

He wished not to be named, saying whatever he said will not go down well with one of the two main candidates.

While quite a few seats in Bihar have witnessed a lack of cohesion in the opposition's alliance, Munger has seen RJD's Tejashwi Yadav working to rally his party's vote banks of Yadavs, who have long been wary of Anant Singh, and Muslims behind Neelam Devi.

In his public meeting here, he has cited time and again the BJP's "conspiracy" against Lalu Prasad to keep him in jail to prevent him from campaigning and said 2019 polls are about "saving" the Constitution, in a bid to forge a unity of his supporters in her support.

He has, however, made it a point to not share the stage with Anant Singh, who is linked to serious criminal cases, including murder, in which victims came from communities that have been RJD supporters.

NDA leaders, however, asserted that the seat's social profile suit their alliance and the image of Modi and Kumar will boost Lalan Singh's prospects further when polling takes place on April 29.

In an irony of sorts, Anant Singh's decade long ties with the JD(U) had ended in 2015 after Kumar speeded up police action him following his alliance with Lalu Prasad, who had pushed for measures against Singh, but he is now a RJD ally while Kumar parted ways with it in 2017.

Asked about Singh's attempts to win over the NDA support base, Niraj Kumar said he is just trying to create confusion and claimed that the contest in the seat is all about the margin of the ruling alliance' candidate's victory.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi has also not campaigned for him, he said, in an apparent reference to his controversial image.

In 2014, LJP's Veena Devi had won, polling over 3.52 lakh votes with Lalan Singh getting over 2.43 lakh votes. RJD's Pragati Mehta had come third.