An analysis of the Mahagathbandhan's candidate list for the Bihar assembly elections reveals significant caste and gender imbalances. Despite advocating for proportionate representation of disadvantaged communities, the Congress has fielded nearly 40% upper caste candidates among its 61 nominees. The Rashtriya Janata Dal, contesting 142 seats, has focused heavily on Yadavs, who make up over 20% of its candidate list. Women remain under-represented across the alliance, comprising just 16% of RJD candidates and 8.2% of Congress nominees. The Mahagathbandhan is contesting 251 seats in total, including the Congress with 61, CPI(M-L)L with 20, Vikassheel Insaan Party with 10, CPI with 9, CPI(M) with 4, and the Indian Inclusive Party with 2. Criminal cases are pending against a majority of candidates, with 61% of RJD and 65.5% of Congress nominees facing charges.
Caste Distribution Reveals Upper Caste Dominance in Congress
Despite Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's push for proportionate backward caste representation, the party allocated 24 of 61 tickets to upper castes, including 8 each to Brahmins and Bhumihars, 5 to Rajputs, 2 to Baniyas, and 1 to a Kayastha. Only 4 tickets went to Extremely Backward Classes and 5 to Other Backward Classes, all of whom are Yadavs. Meanwhile, the RJD focused on OBCs, giving 52% of its 142 seats to this category. Among these, 51 candidates are Yadavs, while 13 are Kushwahas. The RJD fielded 16 upper caste and 11 EBC candidates. The alliance fielded 31 Muslim candidates, significantly below the community's proportionate share based on Bihar's population.
Women Under-Represented and High Criminal Case Count
Women candidates remain marginalized in the Mahagathbandhan. The RJD fielded 23 women among 143 candidates, while Congress nominated only 5 women out of 61. Left parties showed minimal female representation, with CPI(M-L)L fielding just 1 woman and CPI(M) and CPI fielding none. Criminal backgrounds are prevalent: 88 RJD candidates (61%) and 40 Congress candidates (65.5%) face pending cases. RJD's Dewa Gupta from Motihari has 28 pending cases, the highest in the alliance. Chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav, contesting from Raghopur, faces 18 pending cases. The average candidate age is 51 years, with 41.8% being graduates and 16.3% holding postgraduate degrees.
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