The no-holds-barred campaign has thrown up some worrying trends for the country
New Delhi : With the campaign for the last phase of the Bihar Assembly polls drawing to a close on Tuesday evening, the curtains have finally been drawn on one of the bitterest election campaigns after the 2014 general elections. As the prolonged five-phase election has shown, political parties and their top leaders threw all caution to the winds in attacking their opponents. The name-calling and mud-slinging, which was already on a high, became worse after the first two phases with not even a break during the holy Navratras.
From the Dadri lynching case to the unfortunate killing of two Dalit children in Faridabad, every national event found its echo not only in the wide streets of Patna but the dusty lanes of interior villages. Conversely, ”the Bihar election is a national event” line started echoing in the political jargon everywhere… from the loud TV studios to whispers in Delhi’s power corridors.
Though both parties laid claim to the development slogan, this campaign also witnessed the raking up of old wounds from Godhra to the Emergency to even the lathi-charge over Jay Prakash Narayan and finally the nightmare of the 1985 anti-Sikh riots.
Both the star campaigners, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, both a ”vikas purush” in his own right, skipped no occasion to embarrass each other.
The high-pitched rhetoric was matched by high-drama too. Nitish was admired by supporters and ridiculed by critics for seizing on Modi’s DNA taunt and sending sackfuls of hair and nail samples in every train which left Bihar for the national capital. While the ‘DNA’ barb became his timely excuse to make Bihari pride into a political slogan, his smiling face and the kiss of a 90-year-old tantric wishing death for Lalu Prasad brought much mirth in BJP’s rallies.
It also gave Narendra Modi an excuse to hit back after repeated taunts by Nitish that the PM had withdrawn from the Bihar campaign due to an impending defeat. Despite all his media friendly jibes and aggressive caste posturing, RJD chief Lalu Prasad failed to make it into a Modi vs Lalu election. At the close of the campaign it is undoubtedly clear that this is a Modi vs Nitish battle.
