Bihar’s Mokama sees clash of two dons-turned-politicians

Once known for freedom fighter Prafulla Chaki, who shot himself in Mokama on May 2, 1908 while escaping British police, the town later became infamous for caste violence.

Over the past three decades, the Mokama Assembly constituency has turned into a battleground for two don-turned-politicians — Anant Singh and Surajbhan Singh — both facing numerous criminal charges including murder, kidnapping, extortion and illegal possession of arms.

After being released from jail a few weeks ago, four-term former MLA Anant Singh is set to contest on a JD(U) ticket against Surajbhan’s wife Veena Devi of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).

Belonging to the upper-caste Bhumihar community, both strongmen have also maintained significant influence among other social groups since the 1990s. The seat has largely remained under Anant’s family control since 1990 — first held by his elder brother Dilip Singh, and later by him. Surajbhan defeated Dilip in 2000; Dilip died of cardiac arrest in 2006.

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly election, Anant captured the high-profile seat as an RJD candidate but was later disqualified following his conviction under the Arms Act in 2022. His wife Neelam Devi won the bypoll but later supported the NDA during the floor test in February last year.

Facing 52 criminal cases — the oldest dating back to 1979 — Anant, locally known as Chote Sarkar, had come out on parole last year to campaign for Union Minister Lalan Singh in Munger.

In 2019, he was charged under the UAPA after an AK-47 rifle was recovered from his house, but the charge was later dropped and he was convicted only under the Arms Act. Recently, the Patna High Court ordered his release for lack of evidence.

Meanwhile, Surajbhan was convicted in the 2009 murder of former RJD minister Brij Behari Prasad but later got acquitted by the Patna High Court in 2014. He remains debarred from contesting elections due to conviction in the 2008 Rami Singh murder case.