Patna: In Bihar, guns, goons and bahubalis have always played an integral role along with caste-driven politics. The state, where crime and politics go hand-in-hand, will witness a similar scenario this election season. The role of Bahubalis and their wives have always impacted the final electoral outcome in many Assembly constituencies.
A deciding key factor in the Bihar elections, musclemen and goons can also contest as an independent candidate if denied ticket by any party. This time, twelve Bahubalis are contesting on different party tickets and have also propped up their wives to increase their chances of winning. In order to get more seats, the RJD has fielded many such people in the fray, while the parties which talk of good governance are no different.
Anant Singh
Anant Singh, a controversial figure in Bihar politics, is contesting in the upcoming assembly election on the RJD ticket. Anant Singh has filed his nomination paper from Mokama assembly seat. There was a time when Lalu Prasad Yadav was a fierce opponent of Anant Singh. He even got him arrested when Yadav was in alliance with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, which he himself had said during a rally.
* Anant Singh is known as ‘Chhote Sarkar’
* He is an accused in 38 criminal cases
* Most of these cases are registered at Sri Krishnapuri police station
* Police records trace his criminal journey to 1976
* His name came up for the first time in a theft case
* Currently, he is in jail in connection with the recovery of AK-47 rifle from his home
* He is in the fray for the fifth time from Mokama assembly seat
Anand Mohan Singh
A muscleman of yesteryear Anand Mohan Singh is serving life imprisonment in the murder case of District Magistrate (DM) Krishnaiah. He is the most popular name in Bihar politics. Anand Mohan, who was once the darling of many big leaders in politics, is still being discussed. In Bihar politics, Anand Mohan was a name who had the guts to counter Lalu Prasad Yadav in his own language. It is said that there was a time when even Yadav was scared of visiting Saharsa, the stronghold of Anand Mohan. There was a time when many important leaders used to patronize him. Now his wife and son are in the fray on the ticket Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD, though earlier speculation suggested that they would be joining the JDU.
* He hails from Pachgachia village in Bihar’s Saharsa district.
* In 1978, when the then Prime Minister Morarji Desai was delivering a speech, Anand Mohan had shown him a black flag.
* In 1980, he founded the Socialist Revolution Army.
* In 1990, he contested on the Janata Dal ticket assembly poll from Mahishi and won the seat.
* In 1993, he formed his own party called Bihar People’s Party.
* He fought the Lok Sabha poll from Sheohar 1996 and won.
* In 1998 Lok Sabha elections, he got elected on the RJD ticket from Sheohar.
* In the murder case of District Magistrate Krishnaiah, he is serving life imprisonment.
Pappu Yadav
Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav has been active in Bihar politics since 1990. His presence in politics reflects the nexus of crime and politics in Bihar. However, he never agreed to the argument that he himself is a bad man in politics. He calls himself the messiah of rebels, poor and Dalits. He is also known as the ‘Robin Hood’ of Bihar. Before he entered politics, Yadav made his mark as a ‘criminal’ during his college days. Pappu, 53, has more than 30 criminal cases against him.
There was fierce bloodshed in Bihar’s Kosi region in the early 90s, in which hundreds of people were killed in the fight for caste supremacy between the goons close to dreaded criminals turned politicians Pappu Yadav and Anand Mohan, the Rajput caste leader who is currently in jail. There was a fierce confrontation between the two and they did not even want to see each other’s face. Yadav belongs to Madhepura, the neighbouring district of Saharsa.
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* He is an accused in 31 cases of heinous crimes like murder and kidnapping.
* In 1990, he won the elections from Singheshwar assembly seat in Madhepura.
* In 1991, he won from Purnea Lok Sabha seat as an independent.
* In 1996 Lok Sabha elections, Yadav won from Purnea seat with a record more than three lakh votes.
* Yadav lost from Purnea for the first time in the 1998 Lok Sabha elections.
* In 1998, he is made an accused in the murder of CPI-M leader Ajit Sarkar.
* On May 24, 1999, he was arrested in Ajit Sarkar murder case.
* In 2008, a special CBI court convicted him on murder charges.
* Pappu Yadav contested Madhepura by-election and reached Parliament.
* In 2013, the High Court granted him bail after being in jail for 12 years
* Pappu Yadav lost from Madhepura seat in 2019 Lok Sabha election.
Ritlal Yadav
Ritlal Yadav is contesting from Danapur assembly seat on the RJD ticket. Ritlal is pitted against the wife the leader in whose murder case he is an accused. Ritlal is a muscleman of his area. He has a long criminal history. Ritlal Yadav has recently been released from jail. The RJD’s terror man has dozens of cases including those of land capture, murder, kidnapping and harassment against him. In the realm of the underworld, Ritlal Yadav is also known by the name of Mukhiya, which means he will have the last laugh in every matter. Lalu Prasad Yadav had sought the help from Ritlal for her daughter Misa Bharti in the 2014 election. But Misa Bharti lost Patliputra Lok Sabha elections in 2014.
* There are 33 criminal cases against Ritlal.
* Ritlal is the main accused in the murder of Asha Devi’s husband Satyanarayana Sinha.
* In 2002, he contested from Danapur seat on the BJP ticket, but lost.
* He also contested as an independent against Asha Devi in 2010, but could not win.
* While being in jail, he was elected as an MLC in 2015.
* Released from jail on August 18, 2020, in a money laundering case.
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Surendra Yadav
Surendra Yadav is such a don of Bihar politics who is known as Magadh Samrat. He is a man of substance and mettle in the Maoist affected area of Gaya. He is equally effective in Aurangabad. He has been given the RJD ticket from Belaganj in Gaya. Yadav, MLA from Belaganj Assembly and a former Lok Sabha MP, is considered very close to Lalu Prasad Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav. Surendra Yadav has more than three dozen criminal cases registered against him. Yadav contested from Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Lok Dal from Jehanabad in 1985. Then Surendra Yadav was only 26 years old. He lost from Jehanabad Lok Sabha seat.
Sunil Pandey
Sunil Pandey has been an MLA from the ticket of Lok Janshakti Party. This time he is in the fray as an independent candidate from Tarari assembly seat in Bhojpur district. Sunil Pandey also has many serious allegations against him. Sunil Pandey is also linked to Munger’s infamous AK -47 case. Pandey was an employee of the Ordnance Company of Jabalpur. It is said that he fled from there. In 2018, his name cropped up during the investigation in Munger’s AK-47 case.
* Born on May 5, 1966, Sunil Pandey has spent half of his life in jail and in absconding.
* He had stabbed a boy over a minor dispute while studying in Bengaluru.
* Pandey is accused of murder, bomb blasts, kidnapping and criminal conspiracy
* Sunil Pandey’s name also came up in Ara’s famous Civil Court blast
* The arrested accused had said that Pandey gave him the contract to kill Mukhtar Ansari.
* He was also accused in the abduction case of famous neurosurgeon Dr Ramesh Chandra on May 17, 2003.
* In 2012, he was accused of killing Ranvir Sena chief Brahmeshwar Mukhiya.
* NIA also conducted probe for allegedly possessing AK-47 rifle.
* He contested and won from Rohtas’ Piro assembly in 2000.
* Sunil Pandey is four-time MLA.
Rama Kishore Singh
Rama Kishore Singh alias Rama Singh is accused of various heinous crimes like kidnapping, intimidation and extortion. Since the 90s, he has been terror man in Bihar politics. Rama Singh carries lot of dominance in Mahanar area of Vaishali, adjacent to Hajipur. He was recently in the news over joining the Rashtriya Janata Dal. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Rama Singh defeated Raghuvansha Prasad by almost one lakh votes. Raghuvansha Babu, who died recently, had protested against Rama Singh’s entry into the RJD. The RJD made his wife Veena Devi a candidate from Manhar assembly seat this time.
Amarendra Pandey
Amarendra Pandey alias Pappu Pandey is currently a JDU MLA from Gopalganj. This time, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has fielded him as the party candidate from Kuchaykot assembly seat. The image of Amarendra Pandey is also one of a muscleman. If you talk about criminal charges against him, then there are many including that of murder and extortion. He is also the accused of killing brother and parents of the local RJD leader. He is also an accused in the murder of liquor baron Anil Sah in 2012. However, Pandey enjoys the image of Robin Hood in his area and has always been ready to help the poor.
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Rajaballabh Yadav
RJD leader Rajaballabh Yadav has also been in the news in Bihar. He has been sentenced to life imprisonment in the case of raping a minor. Five other accused were also convicted along with him. Rajaballabh Yadav is the first such MLA from Bihar who was convicted while being a member of the House. The RJD has given a ticket to his wife Vibha Devi from Nawada this time. There are also cases of illegal mining, harassment and abduction registered against Rajaballabh Yadav.
Ajay Singh
Muscleman Ajay Singh is in the fray from Daronda Assembly seat of Siwan this time. Ajay Singh had earlier contested the by-election on the JDU ticket. He had sought the ticket from JDU for his wife, but the JDU did not give ticket due to his criminal image. Therefore, he himself is contesting as an independent.
Arun Yadav
RJD MLA Arun Yadav’s wife Kiran Devi will contest the poll on the RJD ticket this time. He was in the news in connection with the rape of a minor girl. Arun Yadav has been an MLA from Bhojpur district. Due to allegations of rape, the orders had also been issued to confiscate his properties.
