When voting is held for the first phase of the Assembly elections in Bihar Thursday, Vivek Anand, 20, will be headed for Delhi. Anand, who came home for Diwali and Chhath, says he booked his tickets months ago, before the poll dates came, and hence will miss his first ever chance to vote. “Anyway, if the government had worked on education and jobs, I wouldn’t have to leave home just to build a future,” he adds.
A Delhi University student, Anand had initially joined Patna University but shifted as he didn’t see opportunities here. “Patna University lacks infrastructure and resources compared to DU.”
It is students like Anand whom the Jan Suraaj is targeting with a ticket to Krishna Chandra Sinha (70) from Kumhrar seat in Patna. A renowned mathematician and a Patna University alumnus, who went on to become its vice-chancellor, Sinha or K C Sinha, as he is more commonly known, is the author of over 70 textbooks which are de rigueur in schools and the countless coaching centres around the capital city of Bihar.
On Tuesday, Sinha wrapped up his campaign for Kumhrar with a roadshow, standing through the sunroof of an Innova, greeting crowds as loudspeakers echoed the Jan Suraaj’s promises on jobs, education, and healthcare. The recorded message mentioned Sinha’s academic credentials, and his awards such as the ‘Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Shiksha Puraskar’, and ‘Icons of Bihar’.
The Kumhrar constituency has 6,454 voters in the 18-19 age bracket (1.50% of total voters), falling in the first-time voter category, besides 53,515 voters (12.42% of total) who are 20 to 29 years of age and actively seeking employment or higher studies.
Statewide, Bihar’s 7.42 crore voters include 14.01 lakh first-time voters aged 18-19 (or 1.89% of total), a figure larger than the total votes that separated the NDA and Mahagathbandhan in 2020. The 20-29 age group, numbering 1.63 crore, forms 22% of Bihar’s electorate; in comparison, women, who have been the focus of all parties, make up 3.49 crore voters, including many who fall in these two age groups.
This massive young vote bank has prompted political parties to recalibrate. The ruling NDA has promised over one crore employment opportunities, while the Mahagathbandhan has vowed a government job for every household. The Jan Suraaj has pledged to prioritise education and jobs.
Kumhrar in Patna district, where Sinha is contesting, has long been a BJP stronghold. Incumbent MLA Arun Kumar Sinha has represented it consecutively for three terms since 2010. Before that too, when Kumhrar was part of the Patna Central Assembly seat, Arun Kumar represented it from 2005 to 2010, while another BJP heavyweight, Sushil Kumar Modi, held it for three terms (1990-2005).
This time, the BJP has replaced Arun Kumar, 74, with Sanjay Kumar Gupta, 50, from the Vaishya caste, while the Congress has fielded Indradeep Kumar Chandravanshi, 47, a Kushwaha and former ward councillor. While K C Sinha’s name has instant recall for students, the caste equation also favours him as he is a Kayastha, the dominant caste in Kumhrar.
Anand says for students like him caste is not an issue, and their hope for change is driven by the lack of options. “Everyone is troubled by this government. Papers get leaked, protests are met with lathis, opportunities are scarce. Students from smaller towns come to Patna… Those who can afford it simply leave Bihar.”
On K C Sinha, he says: “PK (Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor) is holding a mirror to the previous governments who did nothing for jobs or education. Even if his party doesn’t win, he must at least get the credit for making this time’s elections about real issues.”
Shivam Kumar, 23, will similarly lose out on voting in his first election, as he is back at Patna University after going home to Kuchaikote for Chhath. “Anyway, if no government works for students, why waste money voting for them?”
If Kishor had a chance, it would be different, Shivam says. “The Jan Suraaj won’t win, so there’s no point voting for it either.”
Sahil Kumar, 21, also asks what any government does for them. “Every exam brings chaos – fewer vacancies, delays, paper leaks. Students are always protesting in Bihar and getting beaten up in return.”
In another area of Rajendra Nagar, Sumit Singh, 19, who is preparing for state competitive exams, says the Nitish Kumar government should have spared a thought for young men, and the years they spend preparing for papers, which leak. “Nitish ji gave reservation to girls, which is fine, but no one talks about boys. What options do we have? There are hardly any private-sector jobs with a decent pay.”
Raushan Rishi, 21, who lives some distance away, says all those who are capable find work abroad. “Those who could build Bihar are working in ministries in Delhi or as high-value employees in other countries. If there were jobs here matching their calibre, who would leave home?” says Rishi, citing reports of mistreatment of people from Bihar in places like Maharashtra and the South.
Another 20-year old, Shlok Ranjan, says the problems begin earlier. “Students from well-off families in Bihar leave after Class 10 or 12, and rarely return… Patna doesn’t even have a Central university till date. Bihar may have an IIT and an IIM, but everyone knows how they rank (compared to other IITs, IIMs).”
Ravi Kumar, 20, juggles studies with a bike taxi job, earning enough to pay for his tuition and books. “There aren’t many good paying internships or training programmes here… Everyone’s tired of this system,” he says.
Saloni, 23, says she is not enthused by the promise of jobs by political parties. “The government promised over one lakh teacher vacancies this time but announced only about 25,000. When students protested, they were beaten, even girls.”
In Kankarbagh, Rakesh Kumar, 18 and a school dropout, decided he is better off selling vegetables. “One has to survive, job or no job. In government schools, teachers barely show up, books arrive late, and there is no employment. Why waste more money on college fees? It’s better to start a small business.”
Rahul Sinha, 24, who runs a small shop nearby, still has hope. “I’m a B.Sc. graduate in Maths. The SSC notification came two years ago, the exam hasn’t happened yet. The 2014 inter-level exam’s result came in 2021! The next one, for which the notification came in 2023, is still stuck in form-filling… By the time exams happen, an entire generation has crossed the age limit,” Sinha says, adding that if the SSC exam he has applied for doesn’t happen by mid-2026, “I’ll leave Bihar too.”