HAM(S) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi Gaya: Winning five of the six seats allotted to his party, Union minister Jitan Ram Manjhi has received a much-needed boost to his political career. In recent months, he had been criticised for what many described as family-centric and allegedly money-centric politics. HAM(S) had also faced a series of resignations and expulsions.Beyond his own party’s strong performance, the relatively weak showing of ally-cum-rival LJP(RV) has added to the cheer among his supporters. HAM(S) secured a near-perfect score of five out of six while LJP(RV) struggled, losing 10 seats compared to just one loss for the Manjhi-led party.LJP(RV)’s defeat in Bodh Gaya has introduced a fresh dynamic into NDA politics. The presence of Nandlal Manjhi, considered by many observers to be a “loyal rebel” of Jitan Ram Manjhi, is widely believed to have sealed the fate of the LJP(RV) candidate. Nandlal Manjhi has long been regarded as one of Jitan Ram Manjhi’s closest aides.Shyam Deo Paswan, the LJP(RV) candidate, lost the Bodh Gaya seat by a narrow margin of 881 votes while Nandlal Manjhi and Laxman Manjhi — both former aides of Jitan Ram Manjhi — secured 10,181 and 4,024 votes, respectively. Nandlal contested as an independent, while Laxman fought on a Jan Suraj ticket.The victory of Deepa Manjhi, Jitan Ram Manjhi’s daughter-in-law, from the Imamganj reserved seat in Gaya district is particularly significant for the HAM(S) chief, as much was at stake for him. In many ways, Deepa was contesting as his proxy.However, the defeat in Tekari came as a shock for the HAM(S) leadership. Anil Kumar, a former minister and long-time loyalist of the party, was expected to perform strongly but failed to secure the seat.The most morale-boosting win for HAM(S) came in Sikandara, where the party’s candidate defeated former speaker Uday Narain Chaudhary of the RJD. The rivalry between Manjhi and Chaudhary is a long-standing one; Manjhi had beaten Chaudhary twice before, in 2015 and 2020, in the Imamganj constituency of Gaya district.Before the polls, Jitan Ram Manjhi had told NDA leaders that he wanted his party to contest the Atri seat in Gaya district, as his native village Mahkar falls within the constituency. Atri is considered a difficult seat, being both an RJD stronghold and a backward-dominated constituency. Manjhi fielded Romit Kumar, a Bhumihar, even though the seat had not been won by a non-Yadav candidate since 1990, when Congress leader Ranjit Singh emerged victorious.Lalan Ram, the HAM(S) candidate from Kutumba in Nawa district, was widely seen as the underdog. Yet he delivered one of the election’s biggest upsets, defeating BPCC chief Rajesh Ram by more than 20,000 votes.
