Bihar Assembly Elections 2025 | Nitish’s 'clean image' outshines urban mess in state's battle of narratives

Muzaffarpur/Motihari/Bettiah: As the campaign trail winds through north Bihar which is mostly going to vote in the second phase of polling on November 11, one theme resonates across towns: people broadly are satisfied with the welfare schemes and governance stability brought under CM Nitish Kumar despite poor infrastructure and urban mess.

From elderly pension beneficiaries to women who’ve gained from welfare schemes, the sense of having received something tangible from the state government, which has a direct impact on their daily lives, remains strong.

Cities and towns have their own problems like garbage dumping, drainage and water logging during rain but in conversations across Motihari, Bettiah, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj and Siwan, people repeatedly invoke Nitish Kumar’s 'clean image' and 'focus on governance' as the defining factors of this election.

NDA is not only fighting the I.N.D.I.A Bloc, it's also fighting anti-incumbency and voter fatigue due to the almost 20-year long rule of Nitish Kumar. This 'jungle raj' rhetoric is a very potent weapon to fight that. The NDA is also making it a point by raising slogans like 'Sushasan vs Jungle Raj' in voter outreach exercises, says Bettiah MP Sanjay Jaiswal.

Urban neglect and civic discontent

Amid strong endorsements of governance and welfare under Nitish despite his flip-flops, another contrasting sentiment is very much visible and that is of frustration with urban neglect. Cities like Muzaffarpur, Motihari, Bettiah, Gopalganj, and Siwan are grappling with an acute civic crisis of cleanliness and urban mess.

When Deccan Herald visited these towns, a light but continuous drizzle had persisted for three-four days. This persistent rain also had its impact on campaigning with choppers of heavyweights not taking off due to poor weather conditions and road trips getting slowed due to roads turning slushy, gullies overflowing with stagnant water. Motorists and people and cycles struggled to keep their balance on slippery lanes. The civic mess was so pervasive that residents joke, “Bihar ke shahron ka apna monsoon version hai — kachra aur kichad (Bihar's own monsoon version is - garbage and mud).”

This lack of basic urban infrastructure in the most buzzing places of the towns, many believe, reflects the gap between policy and implementation. 'Nitish has given us good schemes, but the cities need urgent attention,' says Richa Kumari, a college student in Gopalganj. 'What’s the use of welfare if we can’t walk to our college without making our footwear dirty or at times without falling?'

In Motihari, a local Naina Devi, spoke on DH camera that the current mayor, Preeti Gupta, has done nothing for garbage and drain cleaning and they do it themselves. The husband of current mayor Dewa Gupta is RJD's candidate this time from Motihari. In this case also, although there is urban mess, it might benefit the NDA and not I.N.D.I.A bloc. At the Mohaniya chowk, a local lawyer, Raza Khan says there is garbage everywhere and he said this pointing towards the main market of the city - Mohaniya Chowk and the Collectorate.

Nitish Kumar’s image trumps the urban problems

When DH spoke to a senior BJP leader in the region and 4-time MP from the West Champaran, Sanjay Jaiswal, he said 'any civilisation that forgets its past will be finished. We will remind the youth of Jungle-Raj and what it symbolises.' He said that it's the party's duty to make youth aware of the 'jungle-raj' which was 'prevalent in Bihar 20 years ago.'

An RJD worker in Motihari on the condition of anonymity said even he is finding it difficult to counter the charge. He said that these charges are bogus but people seem to have made up their mind on this issue. As per him, the best bet for RJD is to talk about creating jobs and stopping migration which Tejashwi Yadav is doing in all his rallies.

In the same city, a local shopkeeper said, 'With Nitish, there is a sense of discipline... Even if roads are bad or garbage piles up, people know that he will not let things slip beyond a point.'

In 2015 when RJD and JD(U) were in alliance 'People voted for Nitish, not RJD,' says Ramesh Agarwal, a well-known advocate in Bettiah. 'He was the governance guarantee.' 2020 again proved that the alliance which has Nitish will somehow cross the magic number.

People still seem to be skeptical about the challenger - Tejashwi Yadav. His name doesn't seem to generate any confidence among voters at this moment in the region.