Bihar’s political and social fabric in the post-independence era has been shaped by a tangled history of caste: deeply entrenched, fiercely guarded, and ever-shifting in its alliances.
Nowhere was this more apparent than in the period spanning the 1990s, known for the towering rise of Lalu Prasad Yadav and the social revolution he unleashed, followed later by the advent of Nitish Kumar.
The Landscape before Lalu: Congress Domination and the Old Order
In the initial decades after independence, the Indian National Congress was the unchallenged power that ran Bihar’s affairs. This period, much like the rest of north India, was marked by the dominance of upper castes: Brahmins, Bhumihars, Rajputs, and Kayasths, both in politics and in the state’s administrative machinery. Despite the abolition of zamindari and lofty ideals of social justice, the lived realities of Bahujans and Dalits largely remained unchanged. The emergence of landowning castes as rural elites did not substantially alter the backwardness of education, industry, or health in Bihar. This concentration of power set the stage for a social churning that would eventually give rise to a new political order.
The Mandal Commission and Social Upheaval
The seeds of Bihar’s later political realignment were sown with the recommendations of the Mandal Commission in 1979, which advocated broader reservation policies for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) across India. When implemented nationally in 1990, these measures triggered intense protests in many north Indian states but also created political openings for OBC leaders, especially in Bihar. The state’s underlying grievance- historic exclusion, landlessness, illiteracy and poor representation- finally found their voice in the era that followed.
The Lalu Era: Caste as Social Justice
The defining moment for Bihar was the coming to power of Lalu Prasad Yadav as Chief Minister in 1990. Lalu, a leader from the Yadav caste (a dominant OBC community), became a symbol of subaltern assertion. His brand of politics- often termed “Mandal politics”- rested on the mobilisation of backward castes and Muslims under the banner of social justice. Lalu’s public style, easily blending humour with earthy wisdom, made him immensely popular among the marginalised. He often claimed to give ‘a voice to the voiceless,’ cutting down the upper-caste stranglehold on power.
But Lalu’s rule, which extended through the 1990s (via his wife Rabri Devi, until 2005), also came to be associated with pervasive lawlessness, stagnation and state apathy-popularly called ‘Jungle Raj’ by critics. The collapse of law and order and poor governance often crowded out the social justice narrative among urban, middle-class, and upper-caste sections. Nevertheless, for vast segments of the rural poor and OBCs, Lalu’s era meant, for the first time, dignity, political participation and a re-balancing of social hierarchies.
Industrial Backwardness and the Exodus of Labour
Even as political power structures changed, Bihar’s economic prospects severely lagged behind. The state scarcely saw any of the industrialisation that had transformed other regions of India. Chronic power shortages, poor connectivity, frequent law and order issues, rampant corruption, and absence of skilled labour discouraged investment. Industrial houses consistently shunned Bihar, leaving the agrarian economy starved of non-farm jobs and the state perennially backward.
This grim situation forced millions of Biharis- often men from the poorest castes and communities- to migrate across India in search of work. Kolkata (then Calcutta) was the earliest and most prominent destination, with Bihari labourers forming the backbone of its jute mills and construction sites as early as the 1940s and 50s. Over the decades, however, this labour flow diversified towards Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Rajasthan, Gujarat and beyond. Bihari migrants commonly worked as coolies, construction workers, rickshaw pullers, security guards or domestic help- jobs defined by long hours and low pay. Migration, borne out of desperation, became a tragic rite of passage for many families.
Social Identity and the Politics of Exclusion
Migration not only shaped Bihar’s demography but also its psyche. Bihari migrants, often facing discrimination and stereotyping as ‘uncivilised’ or ‘backward,’ developed a complex relationship with their host states. Remittances sustained families back home, but these circuits of labour laid bare the failures of Bihar’s leadership to provide local opportunities.
Back in the state, caste remained the most decisive factor in every political calculation. The ‘MY’ (Muslim-Yadav) alliance built by Lalu formed the bedrock of his electoral dominance. Dalits, Kurmis, Koeris and other backward classes intermittently switched loyalties, depending on their perceived inclusion or exclusion in the calculus of state power. For upper castes and the urban middle class, disillusionment with Lalu’s governance further eroded their identification with the state, leading to both physical and aspirational migration.
The Nitish Kumar Turn: Hope and Hesitation
By the early 2000s, fatigue with the status quo created a hunger for change. Nitish Kumar, a Kurmi (OBC) leader, emerged as the spearhead of an alternative model. Combining an emphasis on social justice with improved governance and infrastructure, Nitish’s tenure (beginning in 2005) was marked by efforts to improve law and order, boost public services, and attract investment. His JDU-BJP coalition leveraged both backward caste assertion and the support of disillusioned upper castes, signalling a more inclusive approach.
While Nitish did make visible improvements- roads were built, crime declined, and public school attendance improved- the deep legacies of migration, industrial backwardness and social fragmentation meant that change was slow and incomplete.
Bihar’s story, especially from the 1990s until Nitish Kumar’s arrival, also highlights the profound impact of caste in shaping not just political destinies, but also economic outcomes and social aspirations. Its experience with migration and industrial neglect stands as a stark reminder of the labyrinthine pathways through which political choices, social identity and development (or its absence) intertwine in India’s Hindi heartland.