Deoghar, Nov. 13: Change is the buzzword in god’s own country. Caste equations are fluid in the cultural capital of undivided Bihar and the abode of Lord Baidyanath, which was recently tagged to Godda Lok Sabha constituency. Candidates in this temple town have always banked on caste during polls.
After the post-bifurcation boundary demarcation in Godda Lok Sabha segment bordering Bihar, several assembly constituencies have changed hands. While some have been taken away from Godda and tagged to the Banka Lok Sabha constituency in Bihar, a few have come Godda’s way. The domination of the Yadavs has eroded to a great extent as the upper caste bastions have been attached to Godda. Brahmins hold sway in Deoghar. A host of upper caste Bihar and national-level politicians have houses in Deoghar or are connected to the temple town by virtue of marriage or other familial ties.
A section of the Congress in Godda, enjoying the upper caste support, is not willing to share a common dais with the RJD for the bypoll. It is projecting several names with strong Brahmin roots. The list includes former foreign secretary Muchkund Dubey, former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra, Jharkhand Pradesh Congress committee vice president Kishnanand Jha and Rajneesh Anand ( a native of Godda). All of them have their houses in Deoghar.
Another Congress ticket aspirant and Jharkhand Congress Legislature Party leader Furkan Ansari is also camping at Deoghar, while another vice president of party’s minority cell, Mohosin Khan of Dumka, is lobbying for a ticket in Delhi.
Not only the Congress, RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav and JMM president Sibu Soren also have houses in the town.
To counter the RJD and the JMM, the Congress is planning to field a suitable Brahmin candidate to corner the upper caste vote. The move has put Laloo Yadav, who had earlier thought of providing a ticket to the party’s Godda legislator Sanjoy Yadav, in a dilemma.
According to party sources, Laloo recently asked the Congress high command to field former Bihar minister Abadh Bihari Singh and a native of Mahagama (recently included in Godda) as the Congress candidate. In lieu of Singh’s candidature, Laloo has promised to withdraw the RJD candidate and extended support to the party. “Baba Baidyanath has shown the right path to Laloo,” a party worker said.
Caste equations have also changed Soren’s mind. He has been in touch with Jaganath Mishra and offered him a JMM ticket to fight the election at Godda on the strength of Brahmin votes. However, sources close to Mishra said he turned down the proposal since he wanted to fight the polls either on his own party or a Congress ticket.
Other political parties like the Shiv Sena and the All-Jharkhand Students’ Union (Ajsu), who are also planning to jump into the fray, are looking to Lord Shiva’s turf for inspiration.
