In the 1970s, when the now-deceased Karpoori Thakur was the chief minister of Bihar, a group of his followers visited him to plead the case of an academic who aspired to the post of vice-chancellor of a university. The academic belonged to the backward classes, but was believed to have had questionable integrity. Thakur was not amused. "Why have you come to me to plead the case of a thief?" he asked. Taken aback, his followers argued that many upper-caste academics with equally dubious track records had become vice-chancellors; why couldn't Thakur give his support to the academic in question, especially since he belonged to the backward classes?

"To remain politically relevant, the integrity and honesty of backward caste leaders must be even more profound than upper caste leaders," Thakur remarked, turning down the plea of his followers. Like Caesar's wife, the then chief minister said, those holding positions of authority should be above suspicion.

Almost four decades later, there is a scramble among political parties to mark the socialist icon's birth and death anniversaries. This is primarily because Thakur remains the tallest symbol of empowerment in Bihar for the economically backward classes - a group of over 100 castes constituting 29 per cent of the electorate, with the ability to make or break the fortunes of any politician.

Bitter truth

And yet, all the political parties seem to have forgotten Thakur's words on the need to have impeccable personal credentials, as one scam after another continues to dominate the political landscape of the state. These include irregularities in the purchase of medicines, and the scandals involving the Bihar School Examination Board toppers and the Bihar Staff Selection Commission question paper leak. Now there is what is being described as the 'mitti and mall scam'. The Bharatiya Janata Party has alleged that soil excavated from the land on which an under-construction mall in Patna stands is being used to lay the pathways at the Patna zoo. The land belongs to the Rashtriya Janata Dal chief, Lalu Prasad, and his family, and the forest ministry, under the jurisdiction of which the Patna zoo falls, is headed by Prasad's son, Tej Pratap. The BJP has also alleged that Prasad is now trying to regularize the benaami property he owns.

The irony is that all these scandals have happened at a time when Bihar is ruled by people who call themselves disciples of Thakur. They emerged as political figures in the state through the JP movement of the mid-1970s. The main focus of the movement was against the pervasive corruption during the Congress regime. However, the corruption that has taken root in Bihar on their watch makes the irregularities during Congress rule look almost insignificant.

There is now a theory, floated by a section of politicians, that corruption does not matter any more, caste does. However, they are forgetting the RJD chief before and after the fodder scam. Before 1996, criticism of Prasad was unthinkable. Post-1996, a series of rallies with slogans like "chara chor gaddi chor" took place. Demoralization set in and Prasad's support base dwindled. He is a born fighter, and may have retained a sizeable support base despite charges of corruption, but he remains a shadow of his former self.

Prasad and other political figures like Mulayam Singh, Mayavati and Shibu Soren may have managed to survive on the caste plank. But after their personal integrity came into question, their inter-caste appeal among under-privileged classes has shown a decline. Their job has become more difficult because the integrity of Narendra Modi, their rival who hails from an under-privileged background, remains unsullied. The words of Karpoori Thakur must be ringing in their ears. It is a bitter truth - Caesar's wife must be above suspicion.