Patna: With the sixth phase of elections over and the last phase for 8 Lok Sabha constituencies remaining in Bihar, it will decide the fate of prominent candidates like Ravi Shankar Prasad, Ram Kripal Yadav, RK Singh, Upendra Kushwaha, Misa Bharti, Pawan Singh and others.
Different political parties have ramped up their election campaign. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar are continuously holding rallies in Bihar, while the opposition’s Rahul Gandhi, Tejashwi Yadav and Mukesh Sahani are challenging them.
Voting is to be held in Nalanda, Patna Sahib, Pataliputra, Arrah, Buxar, Sasaram, Karakat and Jehanabad. A total of 138 candidates are in the fray in the last phase. Apart from Karakat and Buxar, the contest is expected to be mainly between the ruling NDA and the opposition Grand Alliance on 6 seats.
The Karakat Lok Sabha constituency is considered a hot seat in Bihar with a triangular contest expected after the appearance of Bhojpuri superstar Pawan Singh. When the election began in Bihar, people thought it would pan out between the NDA and the Grand Alliance candidates. The NDA has fielded Upendra Kushwaha and the Alliance has given the ticket to Rajaram Singh Kushwaha. Karakat has been considered a stronghold of the Kushwaha leaders ever since it emerged in 2008 following delimitation.
In the last three elections held on this seat since 2009 only the candidates of the Kushwaha caste have won. It is also a fact those Kushwaha candidates were part of the NDA. Hence, Karakat is also a stronghold of the NDA.
After the seat-sharing formula of the NDA, this seat went to the quota of the Rashtriya Lok Morcha and Upendra Kushwaha is the candidate in this election.
However, the road is not easy for Upendra Kushwaha this time. He is pitted against Rajaram Singh Kushwaha of the CPI-ML. The battle became interesting after the entry of Bhojpuri film star Pawan Singh. People are crazy about him and crowds are gathering at his election meetings. A total of 14 candidates are in the fray for this seat.
The Buxar Lok Sabha seat is considered to be the BJP’s traditional seat but this time it seems to be in trouble. Former IPS officer Anand Mishra has increased tensions for the BJP candidate. The party has fielded Mithlesh Tiwari as its candidate. On the other hand, RJD gave the ticket to Bihar’s former agriculture minister Sudhakar Singh. Initially, it was turning out to be a one-to-one contest between the BJP and the RJD candidates but Anand Mishra and Dadan Singh Yadav alias Dadan Pehalwan have made the battle quadrangular on Buxar.
Anand Mishra is a Brahmin and Mithileh Tiwari is also from the same caste while Sudhakar Singh comes from a Rajput family. However, the arrival of Dadan Yadav has made his battle difficult. Dadan Yadav is considered a prominent Yadav leader in Dumraon and is also a three-time MLA from Dumraon.
A total of 15 candidates are trying their luck for the Buxar Lok Sabha seat.
The contest on the Arrah Lok Sabha seat is turning out to be a one-to-one contest between the BJP’s RK Singh and Sudama Prasad of the CPI (ML). In the last two Lok Sabha elections, RK Singh won here comfortably. A total of 14 candidates are in the fray for this seat.
The Patliputra Lok Sabha constituency is a hot seat this time. Lalu Prasad Yadav’s eldest daughter Misa Bharti is contesting the election for the third time. She is up against Ramkripal Yadav of the BJP. While Prime Minister Modi has campaigned for Ramkripal Yadav, Rahul Gandhi has sought votes for Misa Bharti.
Jahanabad is another seat where a close contest is expected. The JD-U has given the ticket to sitting MP Chandeshwar Prasad Chandravanshi while Surendra Yadav is trying his luck on the RJD ticket.
“We are going to win all the seats in the last phase. All the seats are already with the NDA. There is no problem this time as well. We are going to win Jehanabad, Buxar and Karakat Lok Sabha seats by a big margin. People will not vote in favour of Naxalites and no one’s stardom is going to work against PM Modi,” said Arvind Kumar Singh, BJP spokesperson.
The Patna Sahib Lok Sabha seat is considered a stronghold of the BJP and the party has fielded Ravi Shankar Prasad again. He is pitted against former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar’s son Anshul Avijit. This time there is a face-to-face fight for this Kayastha-dominated seat.
A total of 17 candidates are in the fray here.
Sasaram Lok Sabha constituency is considered to be the late Babu Jagjivan Ram’s seat and as long as he was alive, he remained MP from 1952 to 1984. After him, Chhedi Paswan won the election from Sasaram on a BJP ticket. This time the BJP has fielded Shivesh Ram, son of former MP Munilal Ram, while the Congress has fielded Manoj Kumar. Ten candidates are trying their luck in the Sasaram Lok Sabha seat.
The Nalanda Lok Sabha seat is considered to be the strongest fort of Nitish Kumar. Kaushalendra Kumar won here in 2009, 2014 and 2019 and is contesting against Sandeep Saurav of the CPI-ML. Sandeep Saurav is also the MLA from Paliganj. A total of 29 candidates are vying for the seat.
–IANS