Mahadalits may turn out to be key factor

Three days before he was handpicked by his mentor Nitish Kumar and coronated as the Bihar’s first Mahadalit chief minister in May 2014, very few people in and outside Bihar had heard about Jitan Ram Manjhi. He had come a poor third while contesting the parliamentary elections as the JD(U) nominee from his home turf Gaya Lok Sabha constituency last year.

The soft-spoken Manjhi was asked to contest Lok Sabha polls from the reserved constituency but he lost to BJP’s Hari Manjhi.  But one year down the line, the same Manjhi, after being unceremoniously removed as CM, has turned into a self-styled Mahadalit icon.

Having assiduously cultivated the Mahadalit constituency, which, along with other dalits form nearly 16 per cent of the electorate in the caste-ridden Bihar, Manjhi misses no opportunity in spewing venom on his former mentors – Nitish, Lalu and the Congress. Ironically, Manjhi began his career as a Congress legislator in 1985, became minister in successive Congress regimes before crossing over to the RJD where he served under Rabri Devi too. In 2005, he joined the JD(U) and was again made a minister when Nitish uprooted Lalu-Rabri raj.

But why Manjhi, after being shown the door by the JD(U) is being pampered by the BJP-led NDA? The reasons are one too many. It’s a common knowledge that the large chunk of 15 per cent upper caste voters in Bihar are solidly behind the BJP. With the JD(U), the RJD and the Congress joining hands, the entire Muslim community (comprising 16 per cent) are likely to put their weight behind the Janata Parivar-led alliance.

That leaves 51 per cent backwards, better known as OBCs (Other Backward Classes) and 16 per cent Dalits/Mahadalits, besides two per cent tribals. Of the OBCs, the large chunk of Yadavs (14 per cent) and Kurmis/Koeris (Nitish castemen: comprising 7 pc) are likely to back the secular alliance while the EBCs (extremely backward castes, comprising 30 pc) may be split between the two alliances headed for a direct contest.

The remaining, the 16 per cent Mahadalits/dalits, are vulnerable to be poached by both the camps. While the Nitish regime may have doled out largesse to this marginalised section, the fact that dalit leader Ram Vilas Paswan and Mahadalit leader Manjhi, both are with the NDA, gives the BJP an additional advantage.

Manjhi’s clout can be gauged from the fact that Lalu, till last moment, made an unsuccessful attempt that he (Manjhi) was not shown the door. Even today, Lalu does not speak ill of Manjhi, aware of the fact this could antagonise his vote bank among the weaker sections. Mahadalits too are not averse to backing the RJD, but won’t do so when it will come to the JD(U) nominees. Such is their antipathy towards Nitish for the humiliation he had inflicted on Manjhi.       

Source of strength

“It’s true that Nitish created the Mahadalit constituency. It is equally true that Nitish created Manjhi, who, otherwise, would have remained a minister in the Nitish cabinet. But having tasted power once, Manjhi’s ambition grew disproportionate to his known source of strength. The BJP will soon realise that the man who could not remain loyal to the Congress, the RJD and, above all, Nitish Kumar, will not mind in switching over his loyalty once again,” explained political scientist Ajay Kumar. 

But, he says, as of now, Mahadalits are annoyed with Nitish. “It’s true that Nitish doled out sops, including dwellings, education loan, transistor, school dress and employment for the Mahadalits but this section is now seething with rage. Having stood by Nitish like a rock, this marginalised segment holds the JD (U) strongman responsible for Manjhi’s ouster,” he adds.

This downtrodden lot, which traditionally had been the core vote-bank of the Congress, shifted their allegiance towards the JD(U) strongman a decade back and helped him reap a rich political harvest in 2005 and 2010 polls. Nitish too wooed this section unabashedly as historically, the dalits had been a major beneficiary of the government’s welfare schemes, but Mahadalits, the poorest among dalits, had remained deprived and marginalised.

Manjhi represents this underprivileged section. Hailing from the Mushar community (poorest among Mahadalits and which eats rats), Manjhi, a soft-spoken, non-controversial  whom Nitish thought is pliable and could serve as the de jure CM till as long as he (Nitish) was on self-imposed exile.

But the leader of the 16 per cent marginalised section, Manjhi thought he could emerge as the next champion of the downtrodden. Nitish smelt rat and gave his protégé the boot, though fully aware that it could damage him politically in the ensuing elections.
Now, only the Assembly poll result will throw light whether Manjhi has been able to scuttle JD(U) prospects or he is just another paper tiger.