Munger: As the battle of Bihar nears its decisive stage, all parties in the fray have put in their best foot forward, ensuring that the most prominent faces go among the people and vouch for the candidates. Such events have also compelled the administrations of different districts to be on their toes with political bigwigs converging to battleground Bihar.
But the situation goes to a completely different level when the face of a political rally is Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is visiting Munger on Thursday.
A day ahead of the rally, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) organised a roadshow with bike riders to persuade people to attend the Prime Minister's public meeting, the administration turned the town into a fortress with security personnel deployed at almost all nook and corner.
Venturing into the town on Wednesday, one couldn't ignore the more than usual number of patrolling vehicles and security personnel. Besides, almost all the rooms in the few hotels available were also occupied by security officers and personnel converging from other parts of the state.
According to Munger Superintendent of Police Barun Kumar Sinha, as many as 14 companies of paramilitary forces are in Munger at present to ensure security ahead of the Prime Minister's rally. Apart from these, there are 540 senior police officials as well as over 8,000 constables on duty till the completion of the rally, which is expected to witness a huge gathering.
According to locals, people will need to walk for at least four to five kilometres before reaching the rally venue.
But will the rally by the Prime Minister actually alter the equation in a politically-divided Munger?
If local residents like 31-year-old Pankaj Kumar are to be believed, the rally by PM Modi will surely benefit Pranav Kumar Yadav, the BJP candidate in the constituency. "We want to see a new party in place at state level. And the visit by the Prime Minister will surely help in this regard."
Another resident, 45-year-old Amar Nath, who runs a photostat shop, says that he will surely attend the rally to listen to what the Prime Minister says.
He, however, adds that BJP was leading the race even when the PM was not scheduled to hold the rally. His sentiment is echoed by 61-year-old Mahesh Kumar.
According to Kumar, both Modi's Thursday rally as well as BJP's road show on Wednesday would help the party. "Modi wave is here," he feels.
However, there is a popular resentment about the most important issue grappling the residents of the area, connectivity with other cities through commercial vehicles. There are three major bridges that connect Munger with other parts of the state, and as they have grown old, no large commercial vehicle is being allowed to ply on them, thereby leaving just one road to connect Munger with other parts, hitting the trade in the area hard.
Forty-year-old voter Mohammad Qasim says, "Munger has become an island. The trade is just not able to progress in the region because of the connectivity issue. No candidate has also promised anything on this. We would like to see if the Prime Minister has anything to say about the same tomorrow."
When asked about the issue, BJP's rival and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate Vijay Kumar Vijay said, "I have promised that I will look after the construction of the bridges. People should trust me on the same. I have an identity in politics since 1974, people know me."
He further said, "Modi ji coming to Munger is no issue for me, it won't have any affect on my fate." BJP candidate Pranav Kumar Yadav could not be reached as he was, according to his associates, busy with arrangements for Thursday's rally.
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