Akhil Bharatiya Dhobi Mahasangh representative Chinmayanand Swamy (left) of Chitradurga, Karnataka, felicitates food and consumer protection minister Shyam Rajak at a national council of the organisation at Ravindra Bhavan in Patna on Saturday. Sources in the state’s political circles said that Rajak, who belongs to the Mahadalit community, wants to mobilise members of his caste ahead of the 2014 general elections. “The Mahadalits form a major vote bank for the JD(U),” said a senior political leader, adding that Rajak had been roped in by chief minister Nitish Kumar before the 2010 Assembly elections to garner votes from the community. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh