Hardselling Andhra model in Bihar hinterland for votes-23/10/10

Hardselling Andhra model in Bihar hinterland for votes

23/10/10

He holds a masters in Hindi literature from Delhi University and is a junior research fellow, eligible to become a lecturer in any prestigious college. His farmer father had sent him to Delhi, hoping he would get a good job and support the family. But Vijay Kumar Mishra, 27, wanted something else.



He wanted to get back to the roots and offer his people a realistic framework of development that does away with red-tape and corruption right from the panchayat, police station to block levels. This tech-savvy candidate from Darbhanga’s Benipur has been hard-selling a successful panchayati raj development model as well as making people aware of EVMs and the RTI Act. Assisting him is his laptop, which he carries as ready reference for facts and figures on Bihar.



Mishra has been showing a short film on Hibre Bazar — a model Andhra Pradesh village — in every village of the constituency in the past three months, stressing on bigger participation of people at local level of governance.

With command over Hindi and the local dialect Maithili, he is trying to educate people about their rights. A candidate of newly-formed Bharat Vikas Morcha, he has struck a chord with young voters and women in a seat that sees a straight fight between the RJD and the BJP. But Mishra is not bothered. “I am not worried about any big fight, nor I have anything against any ideology. I am for a better delivery system and telling people how it can be achieved by choosing the right representative.”


Mishra starts his day with over a dozen supporters for public interaction. His supporters wave the party flag carrying his election symbol — an electricity fan that subtly hints at poor power supply.


Joining politics, or “social work” as Mishra prefers to call it, was a tough decision with father being a farmer and brother doing petty jobs for a living. “The educated people have to join politics to effect changes. It has been enough of catchy slogans and caste arithmetic, now is the time to deliver in a welfare state,” Mishra said.