RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav addresses the media after releasing I.N.D.I.A. bloc's manifesto for the Bihar Assembly elections, in Patna.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Tejashwi Yadav may be the obvious choice to be the I.N.D.I.A. bloc’s chief ministerial face for Bihar, but there are questions about the strategy to turn the Assembly elections into a personality contest with the sole focus on the RJD scion as against the projection of unity among allies.
With no major realignment of caste or communities against the backdrop of the elections, it is to be seen whether a personalised projection of a leader, whose party and family face allegations of ‘jungle raj’, brings dividends, or should there be a strategy recalibration to espouse collective leadership.
The road to the announcement of Tejashwi as the chief ministerial candidate was not a smooth one despite its predictability, as the Congress dragged its feet till the last minute, and VIP chief Mukesh Sahani raised the bargaining chip seeking an assurance of him being named a deputy chief ministerial face.
A banner at the dais of the first joint appearance of alliance leaders on October 23 at a press conference in Patna, when the chief ministerial face was unveiled, had only the picture of Tejashwi, omitting all other I.N.D.I.A. bloc leaders.
The joint manifesto, which was released on October 28, too bore Tejashwi’s name and photo — ‘Bihar ka Tejashwi Pran’ (Tejashwi's Resolve) — unlike the past practice. The manifesto was projected like a personalised pledge from Tejashwi.
The 32-page manifesto also prominently displayed the RJD leader’s photo while dwarfing the images of others, including top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. In an apparent attempt to come out of his father’s shadow, Lalu Prasad’s image on the booklet was also ‘stamp size’.
On both occasions, no top Congress leader was present, though Rahul and Tejashwi were together at campaign rallies on Wednesday. At the rallies too, Tejashwi referred to him in the third person and even asked, “had Tejashwi brought any trouble to people? Will you give a chance to Tejashwi?”
RJD strategists appear to have gathered confidence of making it a Tejashwi battle from the 2020 election results when the party came close to forming a government after a campaign he led and the image he developed as a Deputy Chief Minister before that.
His party would also like to project him as a youthful and futuristic face, who is emerging as the undisputed leader of the anti-BJP front, against an ageing rival Nitish Kumar, as it believes that there is nothing to be scared of the allegations of ‘jungle raj’.
Not all in the Opposition camp is enthusiastic about the ‘solo show’ of Tejashwi, amid resentment in the alliance about the RJD roughshodding the seat-sharing negotiations and not taking the initiative to minimise friendly fights.
An answer to the question of whether Bihari voters will trust an untested player with political baggage and if he can surpass the challenge posed by an experienced leader in Nitish Kumar will be known on November 14.