PATNA: Poll strategist Prashant Kishor, who will embark on a 3,200km ‘padyatra’ (foot march) in the state from October 2, said politics in Bihar has been in the stage of “inertia” since 1970s and all MLAs, MPs and ministers have been coming from mere 1200-1300 political families, irrespective of whoever has been the chief minister.
Kishor made the statement in Vaishali, where he is on a four-day tour ahead of his padyatra. The poll strategist has started public interaction programmes across the state, starting from Vaishali, where he is set to hold around 40 public interactions.
On the first day of his Vaishali tour on Monday, Kishor visited the ancestral house of RJD’s veteran leader and former Rajya Sabha MP late Raghuvansh Prasad Singh in Mahnar block and offered floral tributes to him.
Kishor’s political moves in Bihar seem much strategized as he first claimed to launch his padytara from Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘karmbhumi’ Champaran and now he has embarked on his mass outreach programme from Vaishali, which is believed to be the first republic in the world.
Earlier, talking to reporters after arriving in Vaishali on Sunday, Kishor had said, “If we list all MLAs, MPs and ministers or runners-up in Bihar over the last 30 years, it will be seen that all those people belong to only 1200-1300 families, whereas there are more than 3 crore families in Bihar. It doesn’t matter who is the chief minister or which party is in the government. The same lot of people has been on the political front.”
“There has been no big socio-political movement in Bihar after 1975 (Jaya Prakash movement). In fact, there has been inertia in the socio-political scenario with no opportunity for new people who want to join a political platform and work for development of the state,” he added.
Elaborating his blueprint for Jan Suraaj, Kishor said, “Bihar requires a new thought process and effort, which cannot be of one single person or party. It can be of people of Bihar. The need is to identify such people who are willing and capable to bring development in Bihar and bring them on one platform. The idea is to make the foundation and structure ready, thereafter everybody knows that I have at least some knowledge of election management based on my experience of last 10 years.”
Kishor said around 60,000 people have volunteered to interact with him. Kishor, while making formal announcement of Jan Suraaj campaign on May 5, had said 18,000 people, who will be approached, have already been identified.
“Kishor will try to interact with most of 60,000 people over the next four months ahead of his padyatra from October 2, which will go on for next eight to 12 months,” an aide of Kishor said.
Addressing a people’s meet at Vaishali on Sunday evening, Kishor said: “Many people are saying that I will fail or I will not be able to overcome caste politics of Bihar. However, I would like to categorically say that I have made all the assessments, how it can be done, how much money and time will be required in it and other aspects. I can give it in writing that I will succeed in this movement, no matter whether it will be in one or two or more attempts.”
