Jamshedpur, Jan. 8: Hours after the people of Tamar gave their verdict in favour of Raja Peter, the mood in Jamshedpur swung from one of jubilation to that of nonchalance.

While Baridih — home to Peter’s daughter-in-law Behula Munda and her family — burst into bouts of ecstasy, for relatives in Bisanagar, barely 4km away, it was just a ritual to watch the fate of the Jharkhand Party candidate unfold on television.

“There is no reason to celebrate,” snapped the Tamar strongman’s daughter, Smiti Ria, when asked how she felt to see her father triumph over Jharkhand’s most powerful man (read Shibu Soren).

Sixteen-year-old Smiti is the child of Peter and his first wife, Monika. Father-daughter relationship strained apparently after Monika’s death 10 years ago. “I last saw my father in the graveyard, where my mother was buried. I haven’t seen or heard from him after that. He (Peter) neither cared to enquire how I was doing, nor did I. Whatever relationship we had ended with the death of my mother. So, why celebrate?” Smiti said. Her voice was sad, but laced with sarcasm.

The teenager minced no words to say that the only people she owed were her maternal uncle and aunt. “I love them and am grateful to them,” she said. There were tears in her eyes. Smiti’s maternal uncle, Patrick, said he had remained glued to the television since morning. “I was sure of Peter’s win. This time he had worked hard,” he said nonchalantly.

He went on to say how Monika and Peter fell in love and tied the knot in 1993. “We are still with Peter because my sister loved him, but there is no reason to celebrate,” Patrick said, making it clear that they were not very happy with Peter’s choice to shrug off his daughter’s responsibility.

Meanwhile, at Jaher Tola in Baridih, daughter-in-law Behula and her family members almost went berserk with joy. They smeared each other with vermilion and distributed sweets among neighbours. “We were sure of his victory. There had been reports of rigging earlier. But the one we love has made history,” said a beaming Behula.

Pointing to a particular room in her residence, she narrated how Peter had spent days there after the death of his first wife. “Baridih was his second home.”

Elderly neighbours recalled the shy, young man whose meteoric rise has made Jaher Tola proud. “ It is almost unbelievable that our child defeated the most powerful man in Jharkhand. We are celebrating his victory,” said Kaira, a neighbour of the Mundas.