We’re glad this article found its way to you. If you’re not a subscriber, we’d love for you to consider subscribing—your support helps make this journalism possible. Either way, we hope you enjoy the read. Click to subscribe: subscribing
The region will vote on 11 November, during the second phase of the election. The Chandravanshi community, classified among the state’s Extremely Backward Classes, has a population of 2.15 million, making up nearly two percent of the electorate. It holds considerable sway over the Magadh region—comprising the districts of Gaya, Nawada, Aurangabad, Jehanabad and Arwal, and roughly contiguous to the boundaries of an ancient kingdom with the same name—which includes 26 of the 243 seats in the legislative assembly. All major parties have fielded candidates from the Chandravanshi community, which considers this a victory.
The community, whose traditional occupation is bearing palanquins at pilgrimage sites, was previously known as Ramani, Rawani, Kamkar or Kahar but has preferred to use Chandravanshi—literally, “descendants of the moon”—in recent years. It claims descent from Jarasandha, the mythical wrestler king of Magadh in the Mahabharat. On 1 November, Bihar celebrated Jarasandha’s five thousand two hundred and twenty-eighth birth anniversary. A few days later, I visited Rajgir, Jehanabad and Gaya to speak to community members.
“Major parties have given our community ten assembly seats,” Indra Mohan Nirala, a former member of the Rajgir municipal council, told me. “This wasn’t the case before.” He added that many other Chandravanshis have been nominated by smaller parties or are contesting as independent candidates. “This time, even the communists and the Congress have given us one ticket each,” Manohar Singh, a Jehanabad-based journalist, said. The community had not achieved political representation before this because it did not know its history, he added. “Now, its eyes are slowly opening.”
The opposition Mahagathbandhan won 20 out of the 26 Magadh seats in the 2020 assembly election, leading the ruling National Democratic Alliance by over three hundred and sixty thousand votes in the region. The Mahagathbandhan also won three of the region’s five Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 general election, leading in 17 assembly segments. Magadh was one of just three regions, along with Bhojpur and Seemanchal, where the NDA trailed in both elections. The Janata Dal (United), in particular, did terribly in Magadh, losing all 11 constituencies it contested in 2020, six of which it had held in the previous assembly. In 2024, the JD(U) incumbent from the Jehanabad Lok Sabha seat, Chandeshwar Chandravanshi, lost to Surendra Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal.
Thanks for reading till the end. If you valued this piece, and you're already a subscriber, consider contributing to keep us afloat—so more readers can access work like this. Click to make a contribution: Contribute