Begusarai (Bihar), The strong presence of the Left has earned Begusarai the name "Leningrad of Bihar", but the Red Brigades here are now battling a saffron upsurge.
The BJP again fielded Union minister Giriraj Singh from Begusarai, while the CP named Awadhesh Rai as the joint opposition candidate on the seat, where the situation has changed significantly compared to 2019.
But the main change, the mindset of the voters, was seen earlier too. The ideological divergence was, perhaps, best seen in the historic elections of 2014, when the seat was won by the late Bhola Singh on a BJP ticket, decades after he had won the CPI(M) Started his political career as MLA.
Five years later, when Bhola Singh was no more, the BJP brought in an "outsider" Girira Singh, who defeated "local" Kanhaiya Kumar.The election battle this time is not as interesting as it was in 2019, thanks to the stellar presence of Kanhaiya Kumar, who launched a spirited campaign in which many celebrities like Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Swara Bhaskar and Prakash Raj have extended their support. Had contributed. .The CPI debutant, who has since switched to the Congress, which has fielded him from Delhi North East, was badly hit by the RJD's decision to field its candidate, which cut into the anti-BJP votes, Due to which Giriraj Singh won. By a margin of more than four lakh votes.
However, five years later, many appear to be changing. The tag of “outsider” may no longer hold against Singh, who hails from Barhiya in Lakhisarai district, just across the Ganges. But the absence of an ultra-arch narrative of nationalism inspired by the Pulwama terror attack deprives the Union Minister of the power he used to love for his dog-whistle rhetoric.Also, unlike 2019, RJD, arguably the strongest regional party in Bihar, is not trying to spoil the game this time. Its chemistry with Leff was also tried and tested in the 2020 assembly elections when CPI (ML), CPI and CPI (M) together came out with a better-than-expected performance. In the assembly elections, CPI got two seats, both in Begusarai , where the RJD won the same number of seats, while the BJP-JD(U) alliance could win only three seats.
Unlike his predecessor Bhola Singh, who was a party-hopper who tried his luck in several parties before joining the BJP, Giriraj Singh is a dedicated RSS man who earned his inspiration as an ABVP worker.
Tall and powerfully built, the Union Minister has proudly added his "gotra" "Shandilya" to his profile on They roam around, warning everyone.People who come across his path feel that here is a man who wears Hindutva on his sleeve. In 2014, Singh was banned for 48 hours by the Election Commission due to his inflammatory election speeches, which five years later He was again condemned for targeting a particular community.
The hardliner is clearly shocked, as was evident from the speech given after filing his nomination papers, in which he declared with unmatched swagger, "We do not need the votes of pro-Pakistan traitors".
Veteran CPI leader Shatrughan Singh immediately lodged a complaint with the Election Commission, highlighting the communal undertones in the BJP leader's speech and claiming that if the Union Minister indeed had credible information that there were "pro-Pakistan elements" in Begusarai, So they should be prosecuted. For not taking up the matter with authority on his orders.Recently, a video went viral in which Singh can be seen apologizing to the locals for "calling the people of Begusarai as traitors".
"Despite you being an outsider, we voted for you. The son of our soil (Kanhaiya) lost to you. But you did nothing for the region. Now you should apologize for using such language", he was quoted saying in the local dialect. Can be heard."Am I not the son of Begusarai", Singh replied with great anger on his face. Notably, CPI is also the major challenger to Singh, with former MLA Avadhesh Rai being the party's candidate.
The choice of OBC Yadav Rai appears counterintuitive in a seat where till now an upper caste Bhumihar has always been elected, except in 2009 when JD(U)'s Monajir Hasan became Begusarai MP.
The RJD, which has been the most preferred party of the numerically powerful Yadavs, seems to be fully aware of this challenge. This is why when Rai filed his nomination papers, RJD's real leader Tejashwi Yadav was also with him.Yadav hit out at Giriraj Singh for "doing nothing but Hindu versus Muslim in the last five years".
The RJD leader also told voters at an election rally, "Don't trust the guarantees of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. These people are like Chinese goods that come without any guarantee."
On May 13, when voters cast their votes in Begusarai, they will, among other things, demonstrate whether the chemistry between the RJD and the Left is enough in the parliamentary elections. There are 21.86 lakh eligible voters in the constituency.
The BJP again fielded Union minister Giriraj Singh from Begusarai, while the CP named Awadhesh Rai as the joint opposition candidate on the seat, where the situation has changed significantly compared to 2019.
But the main change, the mindset of the voters, was seen earlier too. The ideological divergence was, perhaps, best seen in the historic elections of 2014, when the seat was won by the late Bhola Singh on a BJP ticket, decades after he had won the CPI(M) Started his political career as MLA.
Five years later, when Bhola Singh was no more, the BJP brought in an "outsider" Girira Singh, who defeated "local" Kanhaiya Kumar.The election battle this time is not as interesting as it was in 2019, thanks to the stellar presence of Kanhaiya Kumar, who launched a spirited campaign in which many celebrities like Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Swara Bhaskar and Prakash Raj have extended their support. Had contributed. .The CPI debutant, who has since switched to the Congress, which has fielded him from Delhi North East, was badly hit by the RJD's decision to field its candidate, which cut into the anti-BJP votes, Due to which Giriraj Singh won. By a margin of more than four lakh votes.
However, five years later, many appear to be changing. The tag of “outsider” may no longer hold against Singh, who hails from Barhiya in Lakhisarai district, just across the Ganges. But the absence of an ultra-arch narrative of nationalism inspired by the Pulwama terror attack deprives the Union Minister of the power he used to love for his dog-whistle rhetoric.Also, unlike 2019, RJD, arguably the strongest regional party in Bihar, is not trying to spoil the game this time. Its chemistry with Leff was also tried and tested in the 2020 assembly elections when CPI (ML), CPI and CPI (M) together came out with a better-than-expected performance. In the assembly elections, CPI got two seats, both in Begusarai , where the RJD won the same number of seats, while the BJP-JD(U) alliance could win only three seats.
Unlike his predecessor Bhola Singh, who was a party-hopper who tried his luck in several parties before joining the BJP, Giriraj Singh is a dedicated RSS man who earned his inspiration as an ABVP worker.
Tall and powerfully built, the Union Minister has proudly added his "gotra" "Shandilya" to his profile on They roam around, warning everyone.People who come across his path feel that here is a man who wears Hindutva on his sleeve. In 2014, Singh was banned for 48 hours by the Election Commission due to his inflammatory election speeches, which five years later He was again condemned for targeting a particular community.
The hardliner is clearly shocked, as was evident from the speech given after filing his nomination papers, in which he declared with unmatched swagger, "We do not need the votes of pro-Pakistan traitors".
Veteran CPI leader Shatrughan Singh immediately lodged a complaint with the Election Commission, highlighting the communal undertones in the BJP leader's speech and claiming that if the Union Minister indeed had credible information that there were "pro-Pakistan elements" in Begusarai, So they should be prosecuted. For not taking up the matter with authority on his orders.Recently, a video went viral in which Singh can be seen apologizing to the locals for "calling the people of Begusarai as traitors".
"Despite you being an outsider, we voted for you. The son of our soil (Kanhaiya) lost to you. But you did nothing for the region. Now you should apologize for using such language", he was quoted saying in the local dialect. Can be heard."Am I not the son of Begusarai", Singh replied with great anger on his face. Notably, CPI is also the major challenger to Singh, with former MLA Avadhesh Rai being the party's candidate.
The choice of OBC Yadav Rai appears counterintuitive in a seat where till now an upper caste Bhumihar has always been elected, except in 2009 when JD(U)'s Monajir Hasan became Begusarai MP.
The RJD, which has been the most preferred party of the numerically powerful Yadavs, seems to be fully aware of this challenge. This is why when Rai filed his nomination papers, RJD's real leader Tejashwi Yadav was also with him.Yadav hit out at Giriraj Singh for "doing nothing but Hindu versus Muslim in the last five years".
The RJD leader also told voters at an election rally, "Don't trust the guarantees of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. These people are like Chinese goods that come without any guarantee."
On May 13, when voters cast their votes in Begusarai, they will, among other things, demonstrate whether the chemistry between the RJD and the Left is enough in the parliamentary elections. There are 21.86 lakh eligible voters in the constituency.
