BJP, Jan Suraaj outrace Congress at mobilising Biharis in Bengaluru
Credit: PTI photo
Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP and political strategist-turned-activist Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj are actively reaching out to non-resident Biharis in Bengaluru, a city where it is said that lakhs of workers from Bihar are earning a livelihood.
The Congress has not yet taken up any such campaign to mobilise Biharis in the state, a senior leader said.
Bihar will vote in two phases on November 6 and 11. The counting of votes will be on November 14.
The BJP’s Vividha Bhashika Prakoshta (VBP), which deals with people from other states living in Karnataka, started its election outreach in March when the Bihar Diwas was celebrated.
“There are an estimated five lakh Biharis in and around Bengaluru,” VBP state co-convenor Sunny Raj said.
“On Sunday, we had an event in Byatarayanapura where (BJP MP) Manoj Tiwari, Bihar state secretary Ratnesh Kushwaha and other party leaders addressed 8,000-10,000 Biharis,” he added.
Raj also said that Biharis willing to engage in election-related work in that state will be sent from Bengaluru.
Earlier this week, Jan Suraaj’s Bihar president Manoj Bharti was in the city to address a Bihari congregation.
“We started reaching out to people from Bihar living in Bengaluru in April. So far, we have reached out to 20,000 Biharis. This includes meeting people on the Sanghamitra Express and Gorakhpur Express,” Dr Nischith KR, Jan Suraaj Bengaluru coordinator, said.
“Around eight lakh Biharis in Bengaluru are labourers,” Nischith, 34, who has a postgraduate degree in community medicine, said. “There are 4,000 Biharis in the Peenya Industrial Area alone.”
Jan Suraaj’s Bengaluru chapter has created over a dozen WhatsApp groups comprising 4,500 Biharis. “The party has 120 people working on the ground in Bengaluru,” Nischith said.
According to Government Chief Whip Saleem Ahmed, the Congress will contact Biharis going forward. “We’ll be contacting Biharis to seek their support. There are Bihari students and employees,” the senior Congress MLC said.
While parties claim that lakhs of Biharis work in Karnataka, the labour department here has information on 22,374 employees or labourers from that state.