Elections in Bihar: almost a third of outgoing MPs come from political families

A recent report has shed light on the deep-rooted culture of nepotism in Bihar politics, revealing that nearly one in three members of the outgoing state Assembly hail from political families. According to an analysis by The Indian Express, 70 of the 243 outgoing MPs – or 28.81% – have dynastic roots.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) tops the list, with 30 of its 71 MLAs (42.25%) belonging to political families. They include figures such as Tejashwi Yadav, opposition leader and son of Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi, and his brother, former minister Tej Pratap Yadav. The RJD also has at least seven MLAs whose relatives have previously served as ministers, including Deepa Manjhi (daughter-in-law of former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi) and descendants of former chief ministers Jagannath Mishra and Harihar Singh.

The trend extends beyond the RJD. In the Janata Dal (United), 16 of its 44 MLAs (36.36%) are dynastic. The number of dynastic legislators from the BJP is only slightly less than the combined total of the RJD and the JD(U), although the report does not specify the exact number. In Congress, four of its 19 deputies (21.25%) come from political families.
Seven ministers in the outgoing JD(U)-BJP government also hail from dynastic backgrounds, including Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Maheshwar Hazari, Sheela Kumari and Sunil Kumar of the JD(U), as well as Nitin Naveen of the BJP.

The report further highlights the growing presence of second and third generation politicians. JD(U) minister Sumit Kumar Singh, whose father and grandfather were both MPs and ministers, represents the third generation of his family in politics. Other notable dynasts include Samrat Chaudhary, son of former chief minister Shakuni Chaudhary, and Santosh Suman Manjhi, son of former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. RJD’s Yusuf Salahuddin, grandson of an MP, and JD(U) minister Ashok Chaudhary, son of a former minister, are also among the political heirs of Bihar.

The findings underline that the roots of dynastic politics are firmly intact in Bihar.