Bihar polls: Can Jitan Manjhi be NDA’s ‘Mountain Man’? How ex-CM could tip the balance for allies

Jitan Ram Manjhi (File photo)

NEW DELHI: Since November 2005, Bihar has had only two chief ministers — Nitish Kumar and Jitan Ram Manjhi. The office has become almost synonymous with Kumar, who has now held it continuously for nearly 20 years.Also Read | Bihar elections 2025: Phase 1 nominations close, no Mahagathbandhan seat deal yet; why it may not matterYet, when Kumar temporarily stepped aside — for only nine months, as it turned out — he chose Manjhi as his successor. Today, the two no longer share that closeness, the trust, or a party, but remain in the same alliance. And Manjhi, a regional party leader whose support can still tilt the balance in favour of the state’s ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), continues to matter.

Jitan Ram Manjhi, the political veteranThe 81-year-old is a seasoned politician whose career spans over four decades. He began in 1980 with the Congress and later joined the Janata Dal, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and Janata Dal (United) before founding his own party, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) [HAM(S)].A former seven-time MLA, Manjhi has served in multiple Bihar governments and currently represents Gaya in the Lok Sabha. He is also the Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the BJP-led NDA’s central government. However, his biggest political breakthrough came in 2014, when he became the chief minister of Bihar.Jitan Ram Manjhi and Nitish KumarIn February 2015, Manjhi had a bitter fallout with Kumar and the JD(U). Kumar had resigned as Bihar CM in May 2014, taking responsibility for the party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections, where it won only 2 of Bihar’s 40 seats.However, within months, Manjhi was asked to step down to allow Kumar’s return. He initially resisted, but after being expelled from the JD(U), he tendered his resignation days later. Soon after, in May 2015, he launched the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) .Since then, the two leaders have been on-and-off allies, primarily within the NDA.HAM’s political trajectory The party has contested four elections so far – three as an NDA constituent and one as an ally of the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan (part of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance nationally).

The party has been given 6 seats to contest in the upcoming elections, significantly fewer than the 15 seats it had initially demanded.Jitan Manjhi, Bihar NDA’s ‘Mountain Man’?Though the HAM(S) has a relatively small vote share, under 2 per cent, Manjhi’s position as a sitting Mahadalit Union minister could give the NDA a crucial advantage in a closely contested election dominated by just two major alliances, and in a state where caste dynamics remain decisive. In 2020, fewer than 12,000 votes separated the winners (NDA: 125 seats) from the runners-up (Mahagathbandhan: 110 seats).Manjhi’s identity and influence among Mahadalits could help the NDA gain ground against the RJD-Congress-Left alliance, which has already announced a 10-point manifesto for Extremely Backward Classes ahead of its full election agenda. He belongs to the Musahar community, part of the Mahadalit category (within the Dalits) introduced in 2007. According to the 2022 Bihar caste census, Dalits account for roughly 20 per cent of the state’s 13 crore population.Beyond caste-based support, he could also bolster the ruling alliance’s prospects in the Magadh region, where he represents the Gaya Lok Sabha seat. This region includes 26 assembly constituencies, six of which fall under Gaya, giving him potential influence over multiple seats.For the NDA, every percentage point counts. And in a state where caste equations can tilt outcomes, Jitan Ram Manjhi’s modest but strategic influence could well prove the difference between holding power and losing the mountain.The Bihar assembly elections are scheduled for November 6 and 11, with vote counting on November 14. Go to Source