Former Governor of Goa and litterateur Mridula Sinha has passed away recently. A blend of committed political affiliations and unparalleled literary sensibilities, she was born on 27th November 1942 in the Chhapra Dharampur Yadu village in the Muzaffarpur district of Bihar.

The Covid-19 is dampening the mood of people and the spirit of religious pluralism. Long-established Chhath Puja, an outdoor religious ritual and celebration is an environmental necessity. However, with the lockdown on public gathering and such celebrations, given that the pandemic coronavirus, devotees all across the country are reported to be despondent and downhearted.

प्रजा तो बस बेचारी प्रजा होती है,

सके इर्द गिर्द बाड़ा चाहे जो बना दो.

प्रजातंत्र, गणतंत्र राजतंत्र, अधिनायक तंत्र।

November the 3rd, 2020, was the unique day when many Biharis like me followed the second phase of the Bihar Vidhan Sabha election with one eye on the U.S. presidential election.

Bihar Assembly elections 2020

Back in the 70’s and 80’s, fragmentation of the opposition votes benefitted the ruling Congress party. By the same logic, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its coalition NDA, in the 2020’s, must take advantage of the splitting up of the votes against them.

Bihar Assembly elections 2020

Election is an expense
At the cost of the people,
Voters are poor, rustics and rugged
Noble man attired white says:

The unresolved political cleavage between the national presidents of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and the Janata Dal (United) didn’t seem to augur well for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar.

(Author's Note: Elections are here so it is only proper that we remind ourselves that we are a democracy.)

राजा विक्रम चुपचाप उठा और श्मशान की ओर चल दिया। महल के सभी पहरेदार सो रहे थे पर शहर के सारे चोर जाग रहे थे. राजा को श्मशान पहुँचने की जल्दी थी इसलिए उसने उस समय कोई करवाई करना मुनासिब नहीं समझा। सोचा आखिर प्रकारांतर से सारा माल तो सरकारी ख़ज़ाने में पहुँच ही जायेगा.

In this dynamic world we get to know about record breaking achievements by one or the other person in their respective field. Few months back there was wide media coverage of M.C.Marycom, the woman boxer for winning another big title. It is really heartening that good number of sportspersons have been proving their real talent in international sports events.

With the announcement of the state election in three phases, Bihar is poised to have a new Vidhan Sabha (the Lower House of the provincial Legislature). According to the Election Commission of India -- the single federal authority in-charge of nation-wide elections (unlike the USA) -- the first day of the poll, 28 Oct 2020, will cover 16 districts (71 constituencies). The second round of the election will be conducted on 3 Nov 2020 covering 17 districts (94 constituencies) and the final poll on 7 Nov 2020 will wrap up the remaining 78 constituencies in 15 districts.

Remember the 2005 Bihar Vidhan Sabha election that brought Nitish Kumar to power. That election was fought on the plank of ‘Law-and-Order’ against a protracted 15-year long ‘Jungle Raj’ under the Lalu-Rabri dispensation. People didn’t care as much about the economy and healthcare in the state of Bihar.

On 20 August 2020, in the ‘Readers Write’ section of this newspaper, Shahrukh Khan, a writer from Araria, Bihar, raised very interesting but pressing questions on religion. The very fact that he’s concerned about the Bihari society and the ill impact of ‘organized religion’ on it makes him a worthy son of Bihar and we must admire his efforts at inviting everyone for a discussion around the topic of faith, religion and politics.