Bhojpuri singer and actor Pawan Singh, who had earlier refused to contest the Lok Sabha election from the Asansol seat offered by the BJP, has now made it a tough fight for BJP ally and former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha in Karakat Lok Sabha seat.
Contesting as an Independent candidate, Mr. Singh is making big promises in his campaign. On May 22, the BJP expelled him from the party for contesting against Mr. Kushwaha, president of the Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) and a member of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in Bihar.
With Mr. Singh’s entry, the contest at Karakat seat in Rohtas district has become triangular, as the Opposition alliance has fielded Rajaram Singh of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) as its candidate.
Starstruck campaign
Mr. Pawan Singh is banking upon his own fan following, with popular faces from the Bhojpuri film industry campaigning in his support. At a Jan Samvad held at Gorari village in the Karakat Assembly seat on Saturday, large numbers of people gathered to see Bhojpuri stars like Pakhi Hegde, Manoj Tiger, Astha Singh, Chandan Yadav, Ayaaz Khan, Sanjay Verma, Anupama Yadav, Shilpi Raj, Shivani Singh, and Sona Singh on the stage. More than political interaction, their campaign is a live stage show, with the stars seeking votes in favour of Mr. Pawan Singh. On Sunday, another Bhojpuri star Khesari Lal Yadav announced his support and promised to do a roadshow for him for him as well.
Upendra Kushwaha while campaigning in Nokha of Karakat Lok Sabha seat. | Photo Credit: Amit Bhelari
Much of the audience was under voting age; youth who had come from a nearby village to take photos and videos of the stars on their mobile phones. Mr. Pawan Singh has a huge fanbase among the youth who shouted at the top of their voices to see him. Despite the searing heat of the day, with temperatures around 40 degrees celsius, the crowd did not look tired.
Caste calculus
Karakat Lok Sabha seat has more than three lakh Yadav voters, and another three lakh Kushwaha and Kurmi voters. Rajputs like Mr. Pawan Singh account for two lakh voters. The Vaishay community has another two lakh voters. There are one lakh Brahmin voters and about 50,000 Bhumihar voters.
Realising the importance of the caste factor, the Bhojpuri actors and singers performing on the stage did not hesitate to reveal their own castes, to send a message that Mr. Pawan Singh has support from all communities. While introducing herself, Shivani Singh said that she comes from the Kushwaha community; other stars belonging to the Rajput, Yadav, Brahmin, Vaishay, and Muslim communities mentioned these identities when they introduced themselves. Ironically, when Mr. Singh comes on the stage, he says that he does not do politics on the basis of caste.
Fans vs voters
Voters acknowledge that they are mostly there for the entertainment. “He is power star Pawan Singh and I am his biggest fan. However running a country and performing on the stage are different things. Voters are wise enough to take their call. Just wait and watch,” said Pratik Singh, from Budhwal village.
“Like others, I have also come here to see the Bhojpuri artists because I like their songs and acting. As far as giving a vote is concerned, that would be decided on the day of voting,” said Upendra Yadav, a resident of Gorari village.
Though the direct contest is between Upendra Kushwaha and the CPI (ML)‘s Rajaram Singh, who is also a Kushwaha by caste, no one can deny the presence of Mr. Pawan Singh in the parliamentary constituency.
“Very few people have heard the name of this parliamentary constituency before and today the entire nation is talking about it because of Pawan Singh. I have decided that once I become MP of Karakat, I will purchase land for a house and will stay here along with the people of Karakat. I have also decided that when I become MP of Karakat, I will not use the salary of an MP and will donate it for the wedding of my sisters and daughters in this constituency,” Mr. Pawan Singh said, addressing an election rally in Karakat.
Tough challenge
The importance of this seat can be gauged from the fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned here on Saturday, May 25, followed the next day by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
On March 2, the BJP had announced the names of 20 candidates in West Bengal, including Mr. Pawan Singh. His candidature had triggered strong reactions and outrage in political circles, given that the songs and other content created by the singer allegedly denigrated ‘Bengali women’.
On April 10, Mr. Pawan Singh announced that he would contest from the Karakat seat, about 70 km away from his hometown of Ara in the Bhojpur district.
Asked about the tough challenge being put up by the Bhojpuri star, Mr. Kushwaha was dismissive. ”I do not reply to such questions which have no meaning at all. This is a completely baseless question. However, I am more than 100% confident of winning the Karakat seat, and people of this constituency have already made up their mind,” he told The Hindu.
In 2019, the Karakat seat was won by Janata Dal (United) candidate Mahabali Singh. The sitting MP has been dropped this time, with the NDA deciding to field Mr. Kushwaha instead
Karakat will vote in the seventh and final phase of the election on June 1. The Karakat Lok Sabha seat is spread across six Assembly segments: Nokha, Dehri, Karakat, Goh, Obra, and Nabinager..
