Jhanjharpur: JD(U) Puts Its Faith In Incumbent MP Ramprit Mandal For Another Win (image-X/RPMandalMP1)

On April 29, Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah supported Janata Dal”s (United) NDA candidate and incumbent MP Ramprit Mandal as its candidate from the Jhajharpur Lok Sabha seat in Bihar.

Notably, former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra began his political career after winning the Jhanjharpur Lok Sabha seat on a Congress ticket in 1971. Following Mishra’s victory, the seat has largely remained in the hands of backward class leaders.

In the 2019 elections, Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) joined hands with the BJP-led NDA, and its candidate RP Mandal won with 6 lakh votes and defeated RJD candidate Gulab Yadav with a significant margin of 3.2 lakh votes. Yadav secured 2.7 lakh votes.

The Jhanjharpur Lok Sabha constituency comprises six Vidhan Sabhas such as Khajauli, Babubarhi, Rajnagar (SC), Jhanjharpur, Phulparas, and Laukaha. The seat has witnessed several different parties winning a term and then losing it in the next term. For several years, the Lok Sabha seat oscillated between regional players such as RJD and JD(U) with BJP candidate Birendra Kumar Chaudhary winning in 2014.

While the NDA has put its faith in RP Mandal, the INDIA alliance has fielded Suman Kumar Mahaseth of the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP). With the opposition parties joining hands, political analysts suggest that the mahagathbandhan has at least 10 percent more votes than the saffron party.

In terms of education, RP Mandal has a law degree from Lalit Narayan Mithila University in Bihar.

The constituency has an SC population of 13.09 percent and a Muslim population of 18.25 percent. Jhanjharpur will vote in the third phase of the elections scheduled to be held on May 7.