BJP’s Maithili Thakur starts on a sweet note, leads by 8,500 votes in Alinagar

New Delhi: Popular folk singer Maithili Thakur, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Alinagar, is leading by 8,500-plus votes.

Thakur had got 22,236 votes votes till 11.50 am after six rounds of counting. Binod Mishra of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) was second with 13,692 votes, while Biplaw Kumar Choudhary of the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) was a distant third with 686 votes.

The BJP, in fielding Thakur, chose to focus not only on a generational shift, but also sought to highlight the fact that a young leader was given a chance who does not belong to a political family. 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, while addressing a rally in Alinagar in support of Thakur, had stressed the fact that youngsters should be given a chance in politics.

Alinagar constituency was carved out in 2008 following the recommendations of the Delimitation Commission. Elections were held for the first time in 2010. The constituency is dominated by Brahmin, Yadav, and Muslim voters, who have in the past played a major role in determining the results.

The party had also showcased Thakur as ‘mithila ki beti (daughter of Mithila)’, and the BJP candidate too had made an effort to especially reach out to the women voters.

Thakur, born in Benipatti in Bihar’s Madhubani district, rose to fame after her performance and participation in Zee TV’s show ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs’ in 2011. 

Trained by her father and grandfather in Maithili folk music and Hindustani classical music, the 25-year-old is known for singing folk songs, particularly in Maithili, Bhojpuri, and Hindi. 

Being a popular youth figure, she was also made state icon for Bihar in 2023 by the Election Commission of India.

Several BJP bigwigs, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, had campaigned in support of Thakur. Union Minister and in-charge of Bihar elections Dharmendra Pradhan had closely monitored her campaign. The local unit, too, was pressed into action to extend her all support.

The BJP decided to field Maithili Thakur after Mishri Lal Yadav, who won the 2020 election from the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) and later joined the BJP, was convicted in a case and his assembly membership was revoked. During that time, VIP was part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The Alinagar seat is considered a bastion of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and in 2010 and 2015, RJD leader Abdul Bari Siddiqui had won from Alinagar. In 2015, BJP’s Mishri Lal Yadav lost to Siddiqui. In 2020, the RJD fielded Binod Mishra replacing but Mishra lost.

The BJP, while zeroing in on Maithili Thakur, is banking on her social media following and public appeal, especially her connection with the younger generation, which it believes will work in the party’s favour. The singer has 6.3 million Instagram followers and posts regular updates about her programmes.

Caste combinations will play a major role in the constituency, as both the BJP and the RJD candidates  are upper-caste Brahmins. Alinagar is one of the few assembly constituencies in Bihar where Brahmin and Muslim voters play a decisive role. Alinagar has a Scheduled Caste population of approximately 13 percent and a Muslim population of over 21 percent. Brahmin voters are also around 20 percent.

(Edited by Tony Rai)