Within the lead-up to Bihar’s meeting polls, three main marches: Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra, Tejashwi Yadav’s Bihar Adhikar Yatra and Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Padyatra have been anticipated to energise the opposition and reshape the election narrative. All three drew giant crowds and garnered a variety of consideration.
But, when the votes have been counted, none of those grand yatras translated into electoral features. The BJP-led NDA romped residence with over 202 seats out of 243, consigning Congress and its allies to a crushing defeat. The INDIA bloc’s bold marches proved ineffective: Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra didn’t show to be a trump card, and its message of “vote theft” remained largely irrelevant in Bihar politics.
Likewise, Tejashwi Yadav’s tour did not increase his celebration’s base, and Kishor’s two-year-long trek ended and not using a single Jan Suraaj victory. Briefly, symbolism couldn’t substitute for organisation in Bihar’s rugged electoral terrain.
Yatras: A time-honoured instrument of Indian politics
Pan-India “padayatra” has lengthy been a favorite technique for politicians looking for to attach with voters. And they’re abruptly all the trend in politics, with leaders throughout events taking to the street in dramatic, high-octane treks. Rahul Gandhi helped revive the development along with his Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022–23, strolling almost 4,000km from Kanyakumari to Srinagar, adopted by the far longer Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra earlier this 12 months. Sizzling on his heels got here Tamil Nadu BJP chief Ok Annamalai, whose En Mann, En Makkal journey criss-crossed 10,000km and ended with a grand finale attended by the Prime Minister. TDP’s Nara Lokesh accomplished his personal youth-focused Yuva Galam, insisting it was extra about listening than profitable.Such yatras can energise celebration cadres and spotlight marketing campaign themes. The yatras may be termed as “sanjivani” (life-giving) for events, refreshing the organisation and giving campaigns a stable basis.In Bihar, the place rural networks and caste ties are essential, events usually deploy yatras to go to far-flung villages and rural clusters. A well-timed yatra can construct momentum by displaying unity and giving voters a way of participation. But this 12 months, spectacle with out substance was no match for the NDA’s disciplined technique. Regardless of the grand fanfare of those three yatras, Bihar’s voters delivered a really totally different verdict.
Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra
Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra (August–September) was hyped as a marketing campaign to guard voter rights. Masking over 1,300 km throughout 25 districts and greater than 100 constituencies, Rahul donned Bihar’s cultural symbols, the gamcha scarf, a cap and attacked alleged “vote chori” (vote stealing) and the state’s Particular Intensive Revision of rolls. The march started with spectacular crowds, particularly in Sasaram, and projected Congress’s return to rural areas.Nonetheless, from the very begin, it was clear that public enthusiasm wouldn’t final. Within the ensuing weeks, vitality fell sharply. The yatra started with sturdy crowds, however because the marketing campaign moved ahead, the preliminary spark pale. Congress leaned closely on the yatra’s symbolism however did not construct an efficient floor organisation. Outdoors of some massive rallies, senior Congress leaders have been largely absent, and booth-level mobilisation was weak. Rahul’s technique centered obsessively on nationwide points like electoral rolls, which didn’t ring a bell with most Biharis. Peculiar voters have been extra involved with jobs, inflation and native governance than allegations of “voter chori.”
Rahul’s marketing campaign squandered valuable time attacking the Election Fee, and the shift backfired. After rallying round nationwide narratives, Congress’s messaging was drowned out by native realities it did not learn. By election day, Congress solely gained 6 seats out of 61 contested: a depressing 10% success fee. Rural crowds didn’t flip into rural votes. Inside alliance tensions didn’t assist both: Rahul saved a distance after the Yatra and reappeared solely weeks later, and the absence of sustained management additional undermined Congress.In the meantime, Bihar’s ruling BJP and JD(U) gleefully declared Rahul’s march a flop present. Their taunts echoed the bottom actuality: for all its excessive manufacturing values, the Voter Adhikar Yatra did not translate into votes for Congress, leaving the celebration going through one among its worst-ever Bihar outcomes. Briefly, Rahul’s narrative of “vote chori” and his concentrate on preventing SIR proved largely irrelevant to the Bihar voters. His Yatra merely didn’t show to be a trump card.
Tejashwi Yadav’s Bihar Adhikar Yatra
Tejashwi Yadav’s Bihar Adhikar Yatra was launched on September 16, nearly instantly after Rahul’s tour. Setting out from Jehanabad, Tejashwi promised to problem the Nitish Kumar authorities on unemployment, crime and native grievances. The yatra was partly pitched as filling gaps left by Rahul’s march; RJD officers overtly mentioned they lined districts unnoticed of the Voter Adhikar Yatra. By highlighting points in RJD strongholds: Jehanabad, Nalanda, Supaul, Saharsa and others. Tejashwi aimed to consolidate his celebration’s core vote and sign that the RJD was the primary pressure within the INDIA bloc. He additionally used the journey to say himself: earlier, he had declared he would contest all 243 seats, underlining his declare to be the alliance’s undisputed chief.In concept, Tejashwi’s centered effort ought to have solidified his social coalition and countered anti-incumbency. In follow, it barely made a dent outdoors his base. By election day, the RJD had outperformed Congress, however solely marginally: the celebration was on target for about 25 seats, far under its 75 in 2020.Tejashwi did not convert the momentum and anti-incumbency wave in opposition to Nitish Kumar into precise votes, leaving the RJD with its second-worst tally ever. The much-heralded yatra imaginative and prescient of reaching each village did little to beat the RJD’s slim caste profile. Most communities past the Muslim–Yadav base remained unconvinced, and even throughout the RJD, ticket distribution precipitated resentment. Seat-sharing disputes led to pleasant fights the place opposition companions cut up the anti-NDA vote.Ultimately, Tejashwi’s private campaign couldn’t overcome these structural flaws. The RJD held on to pockets of assist however didn’t increase past its conventional base. The youth-versus-experience narrative he touted collapsed underneath the burden of Nitish Kumar’s intact governance credentials and the shadows of the “jungle raj.”
Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj padyatra
Prashant Kishor entered the fray with arguably the grandest strolling tour of all: a 3,500 km Jan Suraaj Padyatra launched on Gandhi Jayanti 2023. A celebrated ballot strategist-turned-aspirant, Kishor promised a folks’s motion – reaching each panchayat, listening to voters, and forging a imaginative and prescient doc on training, well being and agriculture. For months, he walked by way of distant Bihar, courting media consideration and projecting himself as a substitute for each the NDA and the Grand Alliance.
But on November 14, the outcomes laid naked the folly of that endeavour. The Jan Suraaj Social gathering did not register a single electoral win. Most of its candidates forfeited their deposits, signalling minimal vote share. Kishor entered the Bihar polls as a political aspirant and walked out as its greatest loser. Regardless of all of the media hype, his technocratic, governance-centric message didn’t resonate in a polarised contest dominated by clear caste and welfare narratives. Voters confirmed little urge for food for this new form of politics.Kishor had gambled that his nationwide profile and lengthy trek would translate to votes; as a substitute, it highlighted the disconnect. The Jan Suraaj experiment demonstrated that mere visibility can not change grassroots equipment. His late determination to withdraw candidates from sure constituencies solely bolstered perceptions of organisational chaos.
Construction trumps yatra
Whereas the three opposition yatras floundered, the NDA executed a much more disciplined and focused marketing campaign. The alliance maintained unity and clear messaging all through. The BJP ceded sure seats to allies to consolidate OBC and Dalit votes. Caste calculations paid off, and the coalition’s welfare-focused agenda resonated strongly. File feminine turnout over 71% tilted the mandate in the direction of the NDA, pushed by schemes equivalent to ladies’s entrepreneurship subsidies.The NDA ran on a mix of Nitish Kumar’s governance model and BJP’s organisational muscle. Nitish (JD(U)) carried the narrative weight, specializing in law-and-order and welfare. He unleashed a sequence of high-profile welfare schemes for ladies, the aged and the poor: for instance, a deposit of Rs 10,000 in ladies’s accounts, free electrical energy as much as 125 items, and better pensions
In distinction, the Mahagathbandhan’s technique was messy. Seat-sharing remained an open wound: even on the eve of polling, allies had not finalised allocations, resulting in a number of instances the place companions fielded candidates in opposition to one another. This confusion squandered no matter goodwill Rahul’s Yatra had generated. The INDIA bloc lacked a coherent narrative. Points just like the Particular Intensive Revision did not galvanise voters, whereas the NDA’s concentrate on good governance and financial advantages rang true on the sales space stage. The opposition entered the polls divided, with disputes and no unified technique, whereas the NDA’s welfare-focused messaging proved far stronger.Grand marches can generate pleasure, however in Bihar, they can’t substitute for stable organisation and clear management. Rahul Gandhi’s 1,300-km yatra dazzled onlookers however noticed Congress’s vote share collapse to one among its lowest ranges. Tejashwi Yadav’s bid for prominence bolstered the RJD’s base however didn’t increase it. And Prashant Kishor’s sprawling padyatra proved that even two years of strolling can not conjure an prompt vote ban