Warisnagar wrangle: Can Bihar's bipolar politics be shaken in the upcoming assembly elections?

Patna (The Uttam Hindu): Warisnagar, located in Bihar's Samastipur district, is an area known not only for its fertile soil but also for its unique political history. It is a key assembly seat in the Samastipur Lok Sabha constituency, and has remained a stronghold of regional parties for years.

This block is just 10 kilometers away from Samastipur district headquarters, while the state capital Patna is located at a distance of about 108 kilometers from here.

The Warisnagar Assembly constituency was formed in the year 1951. It comprises two entire blocks, Warisnagar and Khanpur, as well as six gram panchayats of Shivajinagar block.

In this seat, voters from Kushwaha (Kori) and Kurmi communities have a strong potential to influence the election results.

The most interesting aspect of Warisnagar politics is that Bihar's two biggest parties, RJD and BJP, have almost disappeared from this area.

After losing four consecutive elections, RJD stopped contesting elections here from 2010 and started supporting alliance partners.

After the second defeat in October 2005, BJP also adopted the same strategy and started supporting allies like JDU and LJP.

The Congress, which had won only once in 1972, was wiped out from the electoral scene due to successive defeats and forfeiture of deposits.

Among the Left parties, CPI also decided to withdraw from this seat due to continuous failure.

The current MLA, Ashok Kumar (JDU), has held the seat continuously since 2010. However, despite his consistent victories, the narrow margin of victory has become a significant challenge.

His victory margin in 2015 was 58,573, which in 2020 reduced dramatically to just 13,801 votes.

The narrowing of this gap was primarily due to the presence of the LJP as a third party, which secured 12.60 percent of the votes in 2020. These votes eroded the JDU's traditional vote bank.

Situated in the Gangetic plains, Warisnagar is blessed with nature's blessings. The nearby Kamala and Kosi rivers make the land highly fertile. This is why approximately 60 to 70 percent of the population depends directly or indirectly on agriculture. Rice, wheat, maize, and pulses are the main crops.

Vegetables such as potatoes, onions, tomatoes, eggplants and cauliflower are grown extensively. Rohua village in Warisnagar block is particularly known for tobacco cultivation.

Apart from agriculture, dairy industry also plays an important role in the economy of Warisnagar.

Elections for the Warisnagar seat will be held in the first phase on November 6 and counting of votes will take place on November 14.