The latest to join the race is the son and wife of Captain Jai Narayan Nishad, the party’s MP from Muzaffarpur parliamentary constituency. Lok Sabha MPs like Purnamasi Ram, Arjun Rai, Mahabali Singh, to name a few, have openly been demanding ticket for either their spouse, son, daughter-in-law etc. In this regard they are even hobnobbing with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress.

As if that was not enough the son of Rajya Sabha MP and the spokesman of the Janata Dal (United), Shivanand Tiwary, is openly seeking the RJD ticket from Shahpur, the home turf. He was very much instrumental in organizing Kisan Mahapanchayat of May 9 last. Shivanand Tiwary openly conceded in a television interview that he counselled him not to join RJD, but the son did not accept his advice. He denied the media reports that he too had a close door meeting with Lalu Yadav.

However, other leaders of the Janata Dal (United) are openly bargaining for ticket with other parties. Captain Nishad, for example, met both Congress incharge for Bihar, Mukul Wasnik and RJD chief Lalu Yadav for ticket for his close relative. Not only MPs other leaders are too interested in getting ticket from party other than Janata Dal (United). There is report that the daughter-in-law of former chief minister, Dr Jagannath Mishra, is vying for Congress ticket, though Dr Mishra and his son Nitish Mishra are considered close to Nitish Kumar. Media reports also said that even agriculture minister Narendra Singh wants his son to be accommodated and if the ticket is not given may think of fielding him from some other party.

The development is very curious as never before the ruling party of the state faced such a situation. It reflects something rebellious in these leaders. Besides, they are not feeling too sure of the future of their own party. Therefore, they do not want to put all the eggs in one basket. If the Janata Dal (United) wins, it would be so good for them, and if it loses and becomes irrelevant after the poll the relatives of these very MPs and leaders would be in a better position. Their victory on the ticket of the rival party would pave their entry into it later.

It is not that Janata Dal (United) or the BJP is any way different on the issue of dynastic politics. If the surname Gandhi helped Rahul to rise, then by that logic how can one deny that Shivanand Tiwary––of course to a lesser extent––also owes his ascend to his father, Ramanand Tiwary, a former minister in Bihar. Dr Ejaz Ali also got so much prominence and rose so fast in the politics because he was the son-in-law of former speaker and minister, Ghulam Sarwar. Dr Ali was till last year the Janata Dal (United) MP, but was suspended from the party after he invited Jaswant Singh to Patna to release his book on Jinnah. Nitish succumbed to the pressure of the BJP and denied him re-nomination in the biennial election in June last.

Similarly, Jagdish Sharma’s wife fought and won as Independent MLA from Ghosi in the by-election last year. The party suspended him but then soon took him back into the fold after large scale desertion of Bhumihars following the reported bid to enact Bataidari law.

When Ajit Singh, the party MP from Bikramganj, met with an accident and died on August 1, 2007 the Janata Dal (United) gave ticket to his widow, a political non-entity. Similarly, when Digvijay Singh, the Independent MP from Banka died in England in June last, the Janata Dal (United) was the first party to offer her wife a ticket. It is other thing that she spurned the offer and is contesting as Independent.

Similarly, when Nagmani was the minister in the Nitish cabinet his wife was an MLA. It is other thing that now they both joined the Congress.

Even in the BJP there is a large number of leaders who want ticket for their spouse or son. The biggest example is that of Shatrughan Sinha’s wife. When the Patna West MLA, Navin Kishore Prasad Sinha, died four years back his son, Nitin Navin, got ticket and won.

But the phenomenon in the BJP is slightly different. If denied ticket these leaders––barring exception––are not fielding their relatives from some other party.

So the perception that there is no dynastic rule in the Janata Dal (United) is just a figment of the imagination of the media in Bihar. The Janata Dal (United) in fact has opened the door for all those who perpetrated family rule, be it Mohammad Taslimuddin or Mohammad Shahabuddin or Anand Mohan. It is other thing that the last two spurned the offer.

It is because of the double standards that the rank of rebellious MPs and leaders are swelling.

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