GURGAON: The battle for
Bihar's future is being fought not just in the state's bylanes, but in rented rooms, factory floors and markets in NCR, where NDA's 'sushasan' pitch and INDIA bloc's 'naukri' promise are jockeying for the migrant vote.
With an estimated 2 lakh Bihari migrant workers living and working in Gurgaon and Faridabad, especially around the large industrial clusters in the two cities neighbouring Delhi, BJP and Congress are both making a concerted outreach to the constituency whose influence travels hundreds of kilometres east as Bihar heads for assembly elections next month.
For decades, economic compulsions have driven lakhs from Bihar to seek livelihoods in NCR and other Indian states. Parties are aware that the migrant community's grievances - lack of jobs in their home state, infrastructure and the pain of separation from families - are not just personal stories but hot-button political issues.
Madhav Singh, who works in Manesar and votes in Supaul, told TOI, "It feels like Bihar is still stuck in the 70s. Other than law and order, nothing has improved in the past decades. Govt should work on improving health, education and civic infrastructure." Nothing that he has heard from political parties has sounded convincing, but Singh agrees the dark days of crime are gone.
For Neerja Gupta, a vegetable seller from Saharsa district, the pain of migration is deeply personal. "I had to leave my family and home to earn a livelihood. I miss festivals and time with them. People from Bihar regularly face humiliation and harassment in other states. That's because Bihar has almost become a slang. I hope for a state where people are not forced to leave home just for college education and jobs," she said. Those like Gupta are the ones Congress workers are reaching out to with Tejashwi Yadav's jobs promise, the plank on which RJD-led INDIA bloc hopes to turn the tables on NDA in Bihar.
Data to dialogueBJP and Congress have compiled data on the migrant population, mapping their home constituencies, noting down issues plaguing their villages and assigning local functionaries to engage them through small meetings, home visits, and community gatherings.
For BJP, the primary message is "sushasan"- good governance. Haryana BJP president Mohan Lal Badauli said party workers had already reached out to over one lakh registered Bihari voters in the state. "We have been urging people to vote for Modi ji and support good governance. Many have assured us they would back the NDA candidate in their respective Assembly constituencies when they head back home next month," he added.
BJP is also following a two-pronged strategy. While on one hand, it is reminding migrant workers of "jungle raj" days under previous govts in Bihar, on the other, they are highlighting development work under BJP rule at the Centre and in Haryana with message that the same model will be replicated in Bihar.
"We have been encouraging migrant workers to talk to their families back home, share their experiences in cities like Gurgaon, and return to Bihar to vote. In some cases, we are offering logistical support to help voters make the journey," a BJP functionary said.
BJP has deployed a battery of senior functionaries from Haryana, including Union minister Krishan Pal Gurjar, state ministers Krishna Kumar Bedi, Rao Narbir Singh, Gaurav Gautam, Rajesh Nagar and
Vipul Goyal and Rajya Sabha MP
Subhash Barala, besides MLAs and former ministers.
Each has been assigned specific responsibilities, either in NCR or directly in constituencies in Bihar.
Gurgaon BJP MLA Mukesh Sharma, for instance, has been tasked with campaigning in the Maner Assembly constituency of Patna. Sharma, according to party sources, has been asked to ensure door-to-door visits, organise street-corner meetings and hold public gatherings where he will detail Haryana's development under BJP rule and outline how NDA aims to do the same in Bihar.
Congress's district president in Gurgaon, Pankaj Dabar, said the party is adopting a more personal, grassroots approach. Local workers - many with roots in Bihar - have been asked to visit houses of migrant voters, give a hearing to their concerns and explain the INDIA bloc's vision for Bihar.
Congress's narrative, according to Dabar, centres on anti-incumbency. Its workers have been highlighting NDA govt's "failures" to deliver on development, tackle unemployment, and create industrial opportunities in Bihar, issues that have forced countless families to migrate.
"All our representatives have been asked to engage with migrants from Bihar in their respective areas. We are running our own campaign here," said a senior Congress functionary, adding that a list of Haryana-based campaigners for Bihar would be released soon.
'Failed state' image hurts For the migrants themselves, the political campaigns are both a reminder of their enduring connection with home and a reflection of the challenges they face.
Pankaj Mishra, a software professional in Gurgaon and a registered voter in Benipatti in Madhubani, pointed to the uneven pace of development in his home state. "Over the past two decades, India has witnessed significant change. Even states like Rajasthan and UP have progressed so much in recent years. But Bihar has been left behind," he said.
Working as a driver in Faridabad, Vinay Kumar from Aurangabad has applied for leave to cast his vote. "I will go for a couple of days to strengthen our party leader," he said, refusing to elaborate on who his "leader" was.
Sanjay Kumar Jha, who works as a security guard at a shopping complex, is from Saharsa but will miss the vote. "No party has approached us here. Whatever the promises made, we are sure who is going to form the next govt. Lalu may not have been bad, but the new generation is eccentric and has no real connection with the masses," he said.
Efforts are on to woo migrants in other parts of NCR, too. Congress media incharge for Ghaziabad Asutosh Gupta said they had identified pockets where the Bihari migrant worker population resides. "We went to Nandgram, Ashram Road, Bhatia Mod and Khoda soon after Dussehra as many of them went back during Diwali and will return after elections," he said.
Divya Gautam, the CPIML candidate from Digha assembly constituency in Bihar, is has Delhi University students in her campaign team. "Three of them joined me as soon as I filed my nomination and four more have been helping me in the campaign," she said. Another group of students in Delhi is helping labourers and daily wage earners travel to vote.
Ashish Kumar, an MA geography student at DU, said the political discourse in Bihar "rarely touches real problems". "Colleges are understaffed, exams get delayed or papers get leaked, and honest students struggle. Elections, however, focus on caste and slogans. That's why so many of us feel there's no future in Bihar," said the youth from Ara whose father runs a transport business.
Vikram Singh, who came to Delhi from Lakhisarai to pursue his BA (Hons) Hindi at DU, identified what needs to change. "In Bihar, even hard work often feels wasted because the system fails. The system doesn't give young people a fair chance to succeed," he said.
(With inputs from Jaideep Deogharia in Noida & Sugandha Jha in Delhi)
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