On the day Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expanded his cabinet taking seven ministers, all from the BJP, Bajrang Dal took out a massive protest depicting “love jihad”.
The interreligious marriage between a Muslim man and a Hindu woman is generally called “love-jihad”.
The Hindutva outfit, associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, took out a procession, in which many tableaux were added. One of te tableaux was dedicated to “love-jihad”.
‘Love-Jihad’ Before Bihar Elections
Talking to the Indian Express, Munger’s Bajrang Dal convenor Saurabh Sampanna confirmed it and defended the move by calling it a “social message”.
He said, “We did not name or target any religion and used some news items published in various newspapers. We wanted to draw people’s attention towards atrocities against Hindu women in the name of marriage.”
Raking up the issue of “love-jihad” may be new to Bihar politics, but political observers are not shocked.
It is also significant that the incident took place on the day when seven BJP MLAs joined the government.
Though the Bihar BJP claimed that Bajrang Dal does not function as an associate outfit of the RSS in the state, it is clear that the ground realities are different.
The Bihar BJP said, “If some local people call themselves Bajrang Dal members, we have no idea.”
However, it made its intention clear when it said that “love jihad is a matter of great concern and its social message could have been given in a better manner than using some gory images.”
Will BJP Dominance Over NDA Go Up?
With 21 BJP ministers in the 36-member government, the saffron party is buoyed by its dominance and increasing clout in the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government.
Though the Bihar BJP President has said that these are the NDA ministers and not the BJP or the JD(U) ones, the message is clear.
Nitish Kumar has accepted the politics of number and admitted that he can no longer work like before and must admit the ground reality.
The harsh reality of the Bihar government is that the chief minister is not from the party with the highest number of members in the assembly.
The NDA government is led by the leader of the party that finished third with 43 members, while the BJP has 80 members in the 240-member Bihar assembly.
RSS On Political Maneuvering?
The Bihar Assembly Elections 2025 is likely to be held in November and the political maneuvering and the one-upmanship has already began with the intention of surging ahead the coalition partners. This is true for both the BJP and JD(U).
Analysts believe, the RSS and other Hindutva outfits associatd with it are upbeat with their role in the assembly elections held in Haryana, Maharashtra and Delhi.
The BJP may also feel it favourable and politically correct to unleash these Hindutva outfits that may rake up Hindutva issues.
Will BJP Rake Up Hindutva?
In politics where the Prime Minister raised the Hindutva issues and talked about snatching mangalsutra and property of Hindus and distributing these among the Muslims, one can imagine what a common cadre can do.
On a campaign trail in April before the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Narendra Modi said that the Congress will appropriate gold and “mangalsutras” of women and private homes of people if they come to power. Besides, addressing a rally in Banswara, his home state of Gujarat, he said that the Congress would distribute property to the Muslims.
Analysts believe the saffron party may unleash its Hindutva brigade as it approaches the Bihar Elections.
How Will RJD, Congress Checkmate Hindutva Brigade?
With these outfits, the BJP may try to create an atmosphere where it can build a narrative that Hindus are in danger and they may become a minority if the saffron party is not voted to the power to make disruption.
The possible approach of the opposition parties is also clear in what the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal have responded to the Bajrang Dal procession on Shiv Ratri in Munger.
RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari slammed Bajrang Dal and asked the Nitish Kumar-led government to crack the whip.
Echoing the sentiment, Bihar Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta said, “The Constitution of India does not allow anyone to attack any religion directly or indirectly. The Bajrang Dal poster was in bad taste.”
However, analysts believe the saffron party may capitalise on in and may further whip up the sentiment to polarise the voters and reap the rich dividends in the Bihar Elections.
The Bihar Assembly Elections 2025 are months away, however, the knives are out.
