With fewer than 10 days remaining until the Bihar election, the opposition INDIA bloc is experiencing a kind of 'I am Spartacus' moment. The Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal, and Samajwadi Party seem to be quarrelling over the designation of 'Jan Nayak', or 'the people's hero', a title that has historically been associated exclusively with Karpoori Thakur, the revered socialist figure and former Chief Minister.
The Samajwadi Party has become the most recent entrant to assert its claim; Ravidas Mehrotra, the MLA from Lucknow (Central), stated on Tuesday, "All INDIA parties will make the decision - on who is 'Jan Nayak' - together. No single party has the right to decide on its own... if so, then we are saying Akhilesh Yadav is the 'Jan Nayak'." The Rashtriya Janata Dal has also laid claim to the title on behalf of its senior leader, Tejashwi Yadav.
The controversy erupted following the Congress party's announcement proclaiming Rahul Gandhi as the 'Jan Nayak'. Jitan Manjhi, the chief of Hindustan Awam Morcha and an ally in the BJP-led ruling coalition, responded with dismissal. "The title is given by the people... it can't be self-assumed," he remarked.
Manjhi directed sharper criticism toward the Rashtriya Janata Dal's efforts to apply the same label to Tejashwi Yadav, who was officially confirmed last week as the chief ministerial face of the INDIA bloc. "I was told people referred to Tejashwi Yadav as 'Jan Nayak'. That is an insult to the word... Karpoori Thakur ji was called 'Jan Nayak'. But what has Tejashwi done for the state..." he conveyed to news agencies.
Dharmendra Pradhan, a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party, offered an equally blunt rebuttal. "There is only one 'Jan Nayak' in Bihar... Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur ji. If anyone makes a failed attempt to copy him, the people will not accept that."
Completing the series of swift retorts, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar delivered his own pointed criticism. The leader of the Janata Dal United posted on X, "These days, some are busy declaring themselves 'Jan Nayak'. But it is shameful to appropriate such a title."
The Congress party's strategy to position Rahul Gandhi as Bihar's 'Jan Nayak' is perceived as an effort to enhance its positive appeal among voters ahead of the polling scheduled for next week. In addressing the backlash against this approach, the party has maintained that it is not engaging in any 'competition' with Karpoori Thakur.
This dispute carries weight due to the immense stature of Karpoori Thakur's enduring legacy and its potential sway over voters in what could prove to be a closely contested election, particularly given that both Nitish Kumar and Rashtriya Janata Dal founder Lalu Prasad Yadav were disciples of the deceased Bihar luminary.
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Further underscoring the importance of that legacy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a visit to Thakur's ancestral village home last week prior to launching his party's election campaign in Samastipur. In retaliation, the Congress asserted that Thakur had actually been a political adversary of the Jan Sangh—the predecessor organisation from which the BJP partially originated—during the 1970s while he served as Chief Minister.
The Bharatiya Janata Party countered by levelling accusations of 'title chori' against the Congress, cleverly adapting its earlier 'vote chori' taunt. Karpoori Thakur was born on January 24, 1924, and he became the first non-Congress socialist leader to assume the role of Bihar Chief Minister, serving in that capacity on two occasions during the 1970s. He is widely recognised for implementing Bihar's policy of alcohol prohibition.
The Bharatiya Janata Party and its opponents had previously locked horns over Karpoori Thakur's legacy in January of the previous year, coinciding with the posthumous conferment of the Bharat Ratna upon him. At that time, however, Nitish Kumar remained part of the opposition coalition, and the Janata Dal United leader issued several pointed comments.
Among those criticisms was Nitish Kumar's statement that he anticipated the Prime Minister would "claim full credit" for bestowing the award on Karpoori Thakur.
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