This story is from October 31, 2020

A lot at stake for Left parties in Begusarai

A lot at stake for Left parties in Begusarai
BEGUSARAI: Altogether 104 candidates are in the fray in seven constituencies in Begusarai district, which will go to polls in the second phase on November 3. Begusarai had earned the epithet of ‘Leningrad of the east’ as Left parties, mainly the CPI, used to dominate the political arena in the district for over four decades. However, after the advent of the social justice era in the state, the dominance of Left parties receded gradually.
With the Left parties under the Grand Alliance umbrella this time and contesting four of the seven seats, they are hoping to regain the lost turf. Here is how the political equations stand in the seven Begusarai seats:
MATIHANI: The seat is dominated by upper caste Bhumihar voters. Though the CPM has fielded Rajendra Prasad Singh as its candidate, LJP’s Raj Kumar Singh has taken the contest by storm. JD(U)’s Narendra Kumar Singh alias Bogo Singh is the sitting MLA from here. The seat was considered to be safe for the four-time JD(U) MLA Bogo Singh until Raj Kumar Singh, a debutant, entered the fray. Raj Kumar, who did his graduation from Delhi University in 1990, has a clean image with no criminal record. However, he is the son of Kamdeo Singh, the most dreaded gangster of the eastern part of India whose smuggling network extended from Nepal to far off Kolkata and Mumbai during the 70s. JD(U)’s Bogo Singh, on the other hand, has over a dozen cases of crime still pending against him.
BEGUSARAI: Congress’s Amita Bhushan is the sitting MLA from this crucial seat. Amita is president of the state women wing of the party also. She is locked in a direct fight with BJP’s Kundan Kumar, a debutant. Amita enjoys a good image for being constantly in touch with voters and easily accessible. “Development work in rural areas, health, education and women empowerment are my main poll planks,” she said. Kundan pins his hope on the massive development works like renovation of the closed fertilizer unit and expansion of Barauni Refinery carried out by the NDA government under PM Narendra Modi. Kundan is considered close to Begusarai MP and Union minister Giriraj Singh. His father Upendra Prasad Singh is Begusarai mayor.
TEGHRA: Birendra Kumar Singh had won the last election from this seat on an RJD ticket. However, he is the JD(U) candidate this time. The contest here is expected to be triangular with Ram Ratan Singh of CPI and Lallan Kunwar of LJP being the other two prominent candidates. Lallan Kunwar is a BJP rebel who jumped into the fray as a LJP nominee after the seat went to JD(U) as part of NDA’s seat-sharing arrangement.
BAKHRI (SC): This reserved seat is set to witness a direct battle between the CPI and the BJP. Upendra Paswan (RJD) is the sitting MLA. However, with Left parties also forming part of the Grand Alliance in this election, the RJD acceded to the CPI demand to put its candidate from here. Surya Kant Paswan is the CPI nominee. He had also contested as the party nominee from this seat in 2015 and come third. BJP has fielded Ram Shankar Paswan from here.

SAHEBPUR KAMAL: Even as JD(U) is fighting it out with RJD in the seat, the LJP has also put its candidate to make the battle triangular. Srinarayan Yadav of RJD is the sitting MLA. However, the party has made Srinarayan’s son Satanand Sambudh alias Lallan Yadav as its candidate this time owing to the former’s old age. JD(U) has put its bet on Amar Kumar Singh, a former BJP man. The LJP has fielded Surendra Vivek as its candidate in a bid to make the fight triangular.
CHERIA BARIARPUR: JD(U) has reposed its faith in Manju Verma, the sitting MLA from here. Manju, the former social welfare minister, remained in the eye of a storm after her name cropped in an Arms Act case. A CBI team had recovered prohibited bores of live cartridges from her house at Sripur village here. She had to remain in jail in the case and got bail after an intense legal battle. To counter her, RJD has fielded Rajvanshi Mahto, a former MP. The LJP has also a strong presence in this constituency with its former nominee Anil Choudhary remaining second in the last two assembly elections for this seat. However, the party has fielded Anil’s daughter in-law this time.
BACHHWARA: This is the only seat from where an independent candidate is also posing a strong challenge to his rivals. Shiv Prakash alias Garib Das, an independent candidate, is son of Ramdeo Rai, the former Congress MLA who passed away only recently. Garib was seeking a Congress ticket. However, the Grand Alliance decided to field Awadhesh Rai, the general secretary of the state unit of the CPI, from here. BJP has fielded Surendra Mehta from the seat.
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