Misa Bharati and Rohini Acharya, daughters of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, are busier than ever. Navigating the maze that is Bihar politics, they are trying to find a way to reach the Lok Sabha.
While Ms. Bharati, a Rajya Sabha MP, is the RJD candidate from the Patliputra Lok Sabha seat from where she had lost to the BJP’s Mr. Ram Kripal Yadav in 2014 and 2019, the Singapore-based Ms. Acharya is debuting in politics against the BJP’s Rajiv Pratap Rudy in Saran.
Leaving 10, Circular Road, the official residence of former Chief Minister Rabri Devi where Mr. Prasad resides, Ms. Bharati has made her father’s Gaushala, a farmhouse 4km away, her base camp. Ms. Acharya is working out of the RJD office in Chapra to tour the constituency.
Both sisters begin their day by meeting people and discussing the campaign trail that last almost 12 hours every day amid the scorching 40 degrees heat. Apples, grapes, oranges, soft drinks, watermelons and bottles of mineral water are packed in their cars to keep them going through the day. Once on the trail, there are road shows and ‘jan samvad’ meets (interaction with people) with both sisters visiting 40 to 45 localities a day besides holding small public meetings.
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With her 10-SUV cavalcade, Ms. Bharti left Gaushala towards Bihta where she was scheduled to hold a road show and meet workers. At Ahiyarpur, she boarded another car, one with a sunroof. As the convoy trundled, speakers blared Bhojpuri songs in Ms. Bharti’s support. In front of the cavalcade, RJD supporters sat in an open jeep shouting slogans in her support. Amid the din, one could hear “Misa Bharti zindabaad, Ram Kripal murdabad”.
As Ms. Bharti emerged through the car’s roof, a party worker gave her a scarf with the RJD symbol that she wrapped around her forehead. With folded hands she greeted voters with a big smile as party workers perched atop an earthmover showered her with flowers. Many women greeted her with a tilak.
“Is baar apni beti ko jitana hai Patliputra se (This time, make sure your daughter wins from Patliputra),” she told the crowd. Sunaina Devi, a resident of Naubatpur, replied, “Aap mehnat kariye, hum log aapka khyal rakhenge (You do work hard, we will take care of you).” Addressing party workers, Ms. Bharti slammed the incumbent MP Mr. Yadav and said he has not done any work in the constituency.
Asked about her chances, Naveen Kumar, a farmer sitting under a neem tree and watching the roadshow, said, “Abhi kya bole, result dekhiyega (What to say now, better check the results).”
In Chapra, Ms. Acharya too greeted people with folded hands and was showered with flowers by party workers who told people how Ms. Acharya donated her kidney to save her father.
The RJD’s district general secretary Sagar Nausher Vaan knocked at the doors of residents at Dahiyawa locality shouting, “Lalu ji ki beti aaye hai, bahar nikalkar jeet ka ashirvaad de dijiye (Lalu’s daughter has come, please come outside wish her victory).”
When an elderly woman opened the door, Ms. Acharya came out of her SUV and touched her feet. Women in large numbers welcomed her and at many places her offered sattu juice (roasted gram powder mixed with water, onion, lemon, salt and chilly), a common refreshment in Bihar.
A Nabiganj, a Dalit locality in Chapra, she drank water from a handpump and washed her feet. She held babies and met people of the Mushar community (rat eaters).
“Mera naam Rohini Acharya hai, Lalu ji ki beti hu, aap log mujhe apni seva karne ka mauka dijiye, nirash nahi karungi. Suna hai yaha ke sansad paanch saal mein kewal ek baar dikhai dete hai (My name is Rohini Acharya, daughter of Lalu ji, give me an opportunity to serve you and I will not disappoint. I heard that the present MP comes only once in five years),” Ms. Acharya told a crowd at Nabiganj.
The Saran seat which Ms. Acharya is trying to win was once a stronghold of Mr. Prasad. The RJD chief had won the seat in 1977, 1989, 2004 and 2009. In 2014, his wife unsuccessfully contested the election and in 2019, Chandrika Rai, the father of Mr. Prasad’s daughter-in-law, was defeated by Mr. Rudy.
Saran will vote in the fifth phase on May 20 while Patliputra will vote in the seventh phase on June 1.
