JD(U) Fields Incumbent MP Dinesh Chandra Yadav In “Yadav Land” Madhepura (image-Facebook/Dinesh Chandra Yadav)

Since 1967, the Madhepura Lok Sabha constituency has been electing MPs from the Yadav community, which comprises around 25 percent of the population, giving it the name “Yadav land.” The JD(U) has nominated its sitting MP, Dinesh Chandra Yadav, who will be facing RJD candidate Dr. Kumar Chandradeep.

Throughout history, the Lok Sabha seat has witnessed intense political battles between RJD strongmen and local leaders. Since 1991, the seat has been going back and forth between RJD President Lalu Prasad Yadav and former JD(U) President Sharad Yadav. The 2014 national elections saw Pappu Yadav contest on the RJD ticket and secure a win against Sharad Yadav and the BJP”s Vijay Kumar Singh with 3.6 lakh votes.

The seat went back to JD(U) in the subsequent Lok Sabha elections, with Dinesh Chandra Yadav winning with 6.2 lakh votes while RJD’s Sharad Yadav won 3.2 lakh votes. Jan Adhikar Party’s (JAP) Pappu Yadav won merely 97,631 votes, coming in third.

The Madhepura region suffers from underdeveloped roads, unemployment, a lack of educational institutions, and the mass migration of labourers. The locals complain that in every election season, votes are asked based on caste equations, not development.

Going to the polls on May 7, Madhepura is also known for being the ancestral district of BP Mandal, who chaired the Mandal Commission, which led to the reservation for the OBC category.

The JD(U) candidate was elected as the MP from Khagaria in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. An engineer by profession, Dinesh Chandra Yadav has a diploma in civil engineering.

The Madhepura Lok Sabha constituency comprises six Vidhan Sabhas, such as Alamnagar, Bihariganj, Madhepura, Sonbarsha, Saharsa, and Mahishi. While four of the legislative assembly segments are represented by the JD(U), the BJP and the RJD represent one seat each.