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EYE ON INDIA OCTOBER 03, 2025 | The Indian Eye 8

Bihar Polls 2025:

Women and Backward Communities

at the Heart of Electoral Battle

As Bihar heads into assembly elections, political parties across the spectrum are sharpening

their focus on women and backward communities, unveiling a flurry of welfare schemes, cash

transfers, and promises of social justice

OUR BUREAU “diversionary conspiracies.”
While the rhetoric differs, the
Patna/New Delhi
underlying strategy of all parties is
n Bihar’s high-stakes electoral similar: secure women and backward
contest, the battle lines are in- communities by promising financial
Icreasingly being drawn around empowerment, social justice, and
women and backward communities dignity. For the NDA, the emphasis
— two constituencies that together is on self-employment and entrepre-
shape the state’s social and political neurship, framed within Modi’s larg-
landscape. The Bharatiya Janata Par- er narrative of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
ty (BJP), its ally Janata Dal (United), For the RJD, the appeal is monthly
the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-Con- income security, targeting women
gress combine, and the broader IN- as household anchors. For Congress
DIA bloc are all competing with com- and its allies, the focus lies on struc-
peting visions, welfare programs, and tural rights and expanded reserva-
populist promises designed to secure tions.
these votes. The convergence reflects both
Prime Minister Narendra Modi political pragmatism and demo-
is set to launch the Mukhyamantri graphic realities. Women account
Mahila Rojgar Yojana, a program for nearly half of Bihar’s electorate,
that will transfer `10,000 each into and the state has one of the highest
the accounts of 75 lakh women across Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, party president Mallikarjun Kharge proportions of backward classes in
Bihar. With a total outlay of `7,500 and LoP in Bihar Legislative Assembly and RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav in conversation the country. Together, these groups
crore, the scheme seeks to foster have the power to tilt the electoral
women’s self-reliance through di- during a roadshow in Patna (ANI Photo) balance, making them the fulcrum of
rect financial support and livelihood this year’s campaign.
opportunities. Beyond immediate to women from backward and eco- Dalits, tribals, minorities, and the Ex- The rush of welfare schemes also
assistance, the scheme envisions fu- nomically vulnerable families. Fram- tremely Backward Classes (EBCs). highlights a shift in Bihar’s electoral
ture credit support of up to `2 lakh, ing it as a response to the NDA’s Rahul Gandhi has promised to ex- politics — from identity-driven mobi-
coupled with training by Self-Help “copycat” governance, Tejashwi has pand reservations into private col- lization alone to a hybrid model that
Groups and the creation of local tried to build his campaign around leges and universities, allocate half mixes caste arithmetic with direct
“Gramin Haat-Bazaars” to sustain dignity, welfare, and the promise of the reserved seats in private schools economic benefits. The challenge,
women-led enterprises. “change.” to marginalized groups, and abolish however, lies in credibility. While
The BJP and JD(U) are betting The RJD’s strategy is rooted in discriminatory practices in public ap- cash transfers and manifestos may
on women’s empowerment as a po- mobilizing women as active politi- pointments. attract attention, their effectiveness
litical strategy, hoping to replicate cal stakeholders rather than passive The INDIA bloc’s strategy is to will depend on implementation, fis-
the gains from Nitish Kumar’s earlier beneficiaries. By pledging regular, broaden the definition of social jus- cal sustainability, and the perception
moves, such as 50% reservation for guaranteed income, the party is also tice beyond symbolic politics, anchor- of fairness.
women in panchayats and prohibition targeting families at the bottom of ing it in structural guarantees like As the campaign heats up, the
laws. Women, particularly from rural Bihar’s economic pyramid, where education, housing, and government battle for Bihar is less about abstract
and marginalized backgrounds, have women’s earnings directly determine contracts. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra ideology and more about who can
often played a decisive role in Bihar household survival. This approach has gone a step further by promising deliver tangible benefits to women
elections, and the NDA is deter- ties into the RJD’s long-standing a new law against atrocities on EBCs, and marginalized communities. The
mined to consolidate this advantage. positioning as the voice of backward coupled with enhanced reservation next government’s legitimacy will
Not to be outdone, Tejashwi castes and marginalized groups. in local bodies. These pledges aim to rest not just on votes, but on whether
Yadav has unveiled the “Mai Bahin The Congress, meanwhile, has build a coalition of the marginalized, these promises translate into durable
Maan Yojana”, a direct cash transfer launched its “Most Backward Justice presenting the bloc as a platform of change in one of India’s most socially
scheme promising `2,500 per month Manifesto,” underscoring its focus on equity against what it calls the BJP’s complex states.

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