PROTEST march organised against back-breaking price rise, unprecedented unemployment, assault on democratic rights and secularism, and concerted malicious campaign against Muslim community along with looming draught situation, evoked massive response of the common people of Bihar. This march was held on August 10.

At Patna, Tejaswi Yadav, former leader of the opposition and currently deputy chief minister of the state, along with leaders of left parties covered 10 kilometres route from “Saguna More” to Dak Bangla square greeting people and raising slogans against the most anti-people government ruling the country.

 Slogans were raised not only against sky-rocking prices, unemployment and Agnipath Scheme but also against the transfer of national assets to the few crony capitalists Adani and Ambani etc. Before the arrival of Tejaswi Yadav near the IT roundabout, the statue of Jay Prakash Narayan was garlanded.

The assembled protesters were addressed by the leaders of CPI(M), CPI, Congress, RJD and CPI(ML). In one voice they vowed to fight against the communal authoritarian regime of the BJP by mobilising the people of Bihar which has the tradition of fighting against the British regime and the successive regimes which failed to fulfil the promises of ushering in social and economic justice for the exploited. The rally ended at the Dak Bangla roundabout. On behalf of CPI (M), Sarvodaya Sharma garlanded the statue of Jay Prakash Narayan.

From North to South and East to West, thousands of people marched to register their strong protest against the brazen pro-corporate policies to fatten the few bloodsuckers at the expense of teeming millions of the working community, the real wealth producers of the country.

In Darbhanga, Samastipur, Madhubani, Begusarai, Khagaria, Chapra, Saharsa, Bettiah, Madhepura, Araria, Purnea, Katihar, Gaya, Jehanabad, Vaishali, CPI(M) led the protest march from the front as it was able to mobilise a larger number of people under its banner is a comparison with other constituents. In the rest of the districts, CPI (M) mobilised a good number of people to participate in the protest march. The state leaders of the Party led the marchers in different districts. State secretary and Central Committee Member, Lalan Choudhary, Central Committee Member, Awadhesh Kumar, and state secretariat members, Rampari and Prabhu Raj Narayan Rao led the march in Darbhanga, Araria, Madhubani, and West Champaran. Arun Mishra, Sarvodaya Sharma, Ahmad Ali, and Bhola Diwakar participated in the Patna protest march.

The massive show of people’s participation in the opposition-led movement paved the way for the realignment of political forces in Bihar, giving a big blow to the arrogant BJP trying to enact Maharashtra drama in Bihar. The positive political development in Bihar is a clear message to the entire country that the left and secular forces should come on one platform to fight together to save the idea of India as envisioned by the revolutionaries and the ordinary people of India who fought side by side to liberate this country from the yoke of British imperialism.

The opposition-led protest march has proved once again that Bihar is alive to the situation and will never allow the BJP to have its way.