New Roads, Old Loyalties and Questions of Development: What Voters Say in Tejashwi’s Raghopur Bastion
Raghopur, Bihar: If building roads and infrastructure has been pipped as one of the cornerstones of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s 20-year-tenure, nowhere is it more visible than on the way from capital Patna to Lalu Prasad Yadav’s family bastion of Raghopur, located about 40-odd kilometres away.
Earlier, while reaching Raghopur – an island surrounded by the river Ganga on three sides – meant taking an often precarious journey on a boat, now the journey from the state capital includes the six-lane Atal Path, the four-lane J.P. Ganga Expressway, and the newly inaugurated six-lane, cable-stayed Kacchi Dargah-Bidupur Bridge.
Nevertheless, all signs of development disappear as soon as one gets off the six-lane bridge to enter Raghopur constituency in Vaishali district. Dilapidated muddy roads made worse by two days of continuous rain, marshland on both sides, thatched roof houses mark the constituency known as the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) bastion.
Tejashwi Yadav's poster in Raghopur, Bihar.
It is here that the opposition Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial face Tejashwi Yadav is seeking a third straight term, after being first elected from his family bastion in 2015. The constituency had earlier elected his father Lalu Prasad Yadav twice in 1995 and 2000 polls, and then his mother Rabri Devi in 2005. Satish Kumar Yadav, who is contesting on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket against Tejashwi in these polls, won the seat as a Janata Dal (United) candidate in 2010 – the only instance in the three decades that the constituency has elected anyone outside the Yadav family.
Satish Kumar who was defeated by Tejashwi in 2020, has been tasked with ensuring the defeat of the Yadav family scion, in the hope that he will do to the son what he had done to his mother in 2010. With Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) now in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s corner, the ruling alliance is hoping to edge out Tejashwi using the newly built infrastructure and development under the Nitish government.
But to the Yadav dominant population in Raghopur, the lack of development or infrastructure matters less than ensuring that Lalu’s son is elected once again.
'No development here'
“His (Tejashwi's) mother and father have all won from here, and he will also win. After elections the roads will be built and we will also get four-lane highways here. Just two days ago Tejashwi was here, along with his mother, they met everyone,” says Chabilal Rao in Raghopur’s Rustampur village.
Rao, a Yadav, who is a vocal supporter of the Yadav family, however, is quick to point out that Raghopur lacks infrastructure and basic amenities but places blame on the Nitish government.
Raghopur's dilapidated roads made worse by two days of rain.
“Our children go to school at least 10 kms away. The nearest hospital is in Patna. In 20 years nothing has been done. There are no jobs, no development here,” he says.
That Raghopur is a Yadav family bastion, was made amply clear last month when Tejashwi came to file his nomination flanked by his parents, both former chief ministers of the state and his sister, Misa Bharti, a Lok Sabha MP. While Tejashwi himself in his poll rallies has been raising the issue of migration in Bihar and accusing the Nitish Kumar government of not bringing any employment and industries to the state, in his constituency, even among his own supporters the complaint is the same but is not directed at him.
“There are no factories here. Our children go to far off places to work in factories and industries. But the village stands with Tejashwi,” says Raghunath Rao, also a Yadav, from the same village.
About 6 kms away, in Rampur Shyamchand village, the BJP has set up a tent near Satish Kumar’s house. Loud speakers are blaring, asking voters to vote in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
A BJP tent in Rampur Shyamchand village, Raghopur, Bihar.
“They (Mahagathbandhan) are spreading propaganda against the NDA that migration has happened in Bihar because of us. The truth is that in 30 years Lalu Prasad and his family have been here and they have done nothing. Just like Satish ji defeated his mother, he will now defeat Tejashwi as well,” says Nagendra Chaudhary, a BJP leader in Rampur Shyamchand’s Zilla Parishad.
“There were no roads, no electricity here. People were scared for their lives. Bullets used to be fired on these roads. People were so scared for their lives they had no time to think of jobs. Now the youth are getting jobs through government schemes, and youth are finding jobs themselves as well. If this was the deputy chief minister’s constituency, would it be in this state? Without any hospitals or proper schools?” he asks.
“Roads and electricity was already here, which Lalu ji gave. They (BJP) have given industries but only to Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. They are talking about jungle raj, is jungle raj not continuing now? Are bullets not flying now?”
While the Mahagathbandhan this time too includes the RJD, Congress, Left parties, as it did in 2020, it has also got a new addition in the form of the Mukesh Sahani’s Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP).
On the other hand, the NDA, is calling itself the “Panch Pandav” with the BJP, JD(U), LJP (RV), Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP). While Chirag Paswan’s LJP (RV) had contested the 2020 elections independently, causing significant reverses for the JD(U), his party’s inclusion in the NDA camp is being seen among supporters as a sign of unity.
The cable-stayed Kacchi Dargah Bidupur Bridge connecting Patna to Raghopur.
Azad Kumar, a BJP worker in the village, says that while he is a Yadav himself, Tejashwi’s promises ring hollow.
“They call him ‘Yadav ke neta’. But in 10 years, has he even opened an office here? Forget here, even in his Patna office, has he given even one hour to anyone from Raghopur? Ram Vilas Paswan was a central minister but his doors were always open for anyone from Hajipur no matter what hour of the day or night it was,” he says and adds, “Tejashwi is only doing jumla-baazi about giving government jobs to every family just to woo Yadav voters. Where will these 2.5 crore jobs come from?”
Caste loyalties remain
But among other Yadav voters in the constituency, the faith in Tejashwi dates back to when he was deputy chief minister in the Nitish Kumar government from 2022 to January 2024. Nitish had then walked out of the NDA and made Tejashwi his deputy for the second time, after forming the government with the Mahagathbandhan. Tejashwi is looking to remind voters of the 5 lakh jobs that were handed out then, while promising to deliver on his promise of providing every family with a government job if elected to power.
“Tejashwi has to be made chief minister. When he was deputy chief minister he gave 5 lakh jobs in 17 months,” says Birendra Kumar who works as an auto driver. “Roads and electricity was already here, which Lalu ji gave. They (BJP) have given industries but only to Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. They are talking about jungle raj, is jungle raj not continuing now? Are bullets not flying now?”
While the contest in Raghopur is between the RJD and the BJP, the constituency also gained prominence last month when political consultant turned politician Prashant Kishore announced that he would contest from the constituency. His Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) has since fielded candidates in 243 constituencies, but Kishore has stayed away from contesting the election himself. His party has fielded Chanchal Kumar from Raghopur.
Locals said that while they have heard of JSP, the party is unlikely to make any gains in Raghopur.
Subodh Singh's house overlooks a stretch of the Ganga that now lies half dry but water rises to inundate his village for four months a year.
“It is a new party. We have heard of Chanchal Kumar, he has even come here. But their number won’t come in this election,” says Kumar.
Further inside Raghopur, an area that remains under water for at least three-four months of the year, even the new bridges connecting Patna to the largely rural constituency remain distant.
“For about four months, the water rises and comes till the entrance of my house. Those who have money have their own boats. But others cannot. If there is an emergency, one has to go to the hospital, how will we go? Even an ambulance cannot come here,” says Subodh Singh in Raghopur’s Jurawanpur village.
Subodh Singh shows the point till which water rises outside his house every year in Raghopur’s Jurawanpur village.
Singh has built his house on an elevated land opposite a stretch of the Ganga that now lies half dry. He points to his entrance to say that water rises and remains there for at least four months. Singh is an upper caste Rajput, considered to be a primary vote bank of the BJP. While the BJP has fielded Satish Kumar, a Yadav, Singh says he will stand with those who do work.
“It is not just about who is a Yadav. It is also about the work that has been done. We have voted for the RJD from 1995 to 2005. The highway that has been built from Patna to Raghopur is also done by Nitish. We want development but because the Yadavs are more in number here, they keep winning,” he notes.
All photos are by Sravasti Dasgupta.
This article went live on November second, two thousand twenty five, at zero minutes past three in the afternoon.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
