NEW DELHI: When
Rahul Gandhi set out under
Bihar's unforgiving August sun for his 'Voter Adhikar Yatra', it was a test of whether he could still find takers in a land where the
Congress survives mostly as a fading afterimage. For 16 days, his campaign carved a noisy trail through dusty highways and crowded colonies.
Today, however, as Bihar's election heat rises and the state readies for a two-phase assembly poll, the buzz is dominated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's fiery speeches, Amit Shah's rallies, Tejashwi Yadav's roadshows and Prashant Kishor's groundwork. Amid all this, one voice remains missing - Rahul Gandhi.
The Congress leaders's last appearance in Bihar was nearly two months ago, when he wrapped up his yatra at Patna's Gandhi Maidan on September 1. The campaign was pitched as a moral crusade to "protect the vote" - an attempt to awaken Bihar's electorate against what he called 'vote chori' (theft of votes) by the ruling NDA.
Over sixteen days, he covered 1,300 km across 25 districts and 110 assembly constituencies - riding motorbikes, donning 'gamcha' for local appeal, visiting makhana farmers - often joined by allies like Tejashwi Yadav, Hemant Soren and others.
But two months later, the narrative has shifted. Rahul, who had briefly stirred Congress's dormant base through his yatra, seems to have lost the momentum. And instead of leading the charge from the front, its leader is missing in action.
When the Mahagathbandhan announced Tejashwi Yadav as its chief ministerial candidate on October 23, the press conference banner carried only one face - Tejashwi's. Rahul was missing, both on stage and in spirit. Within the alliance, the unspoken verdict seemed clear: he may be the face of opposition on the national level, but he was no longer its in-charge in Bihar.
Though there has been no official seat-sharing arrangement, RJD is contesting 143 of the 243 seats of Bihar and Congress is contesting 61 seats.
In the 2020 assembly elections, Congress had the worst strike rate in the opposition camp despite Tejashwi's electrifying campaign that led RJD to emerge as the largest single party. Congress had contested 70 seats, the most in the opposition alliance after the RJD (144), and could win only 19.
Pizza breaks and policy talk abroad
Since his Patna rally, Rahul Gandhi has appeared in public only five times - none of them in Bihar. In late September, he was spotted at a pizza outlet in Gurugram.
In early October, he travelled to Colombia, where he declared that "India’s democratic system is under attack from all sides." During a talk at the University of Chile, he lamented that "free and scientific thinking" was under "tremendous attack" in India.
On October 17, he visited singer Zubeen Garg’s village in Assam to pay tributes. Three days later, he was seen at a sweet shop in Old Delhi, rolling laddoos for the cameras.
Also Read: 5 tips Congress can take from BJP’s pre-poll playbookCongress general secretary KC Venugopal, however, maintained that the party's "full-throttle campaign" will begin only after the Chhath festival. Rahul Gandhi, he said, will tour Bihar on October 29 and 30, followed by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and party president Mallikarjun Kharge. A joint rally with Tejashwi is planned in Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga.
But will this late entry work? For the past month, while PM Modi, Amit Shah and JP Nadda have flooded Bihar with rallies and Tejashwi has built emotional momentum across districts, Congress has remained in political limbo.
Rahul's absence has left party candidates and workers scrambling for visibility and credibility on the ground. His re-entry, barely a week before Phase 1 polling on November 6, feels less like a strategy and more like irrelevance.
For now, Congress is trying to make up for his absence by circulating old clips from the yatra, calling Rahul Gandhi the 'Jan Nayak' — the "hero of the people."
The crisis within the camp
Adding to the drift is Congress's own internal turmoil in Bihar.
Ticket distribution had triggered open rebellion, with state leaders accusing AICC in-charge Krishna Allavaru of corruption and favouritism. Disgruntled members were seen protesting at the party headquarters. Their slogan, "Ticket chor, gaddi chhodd," was an ironic echo of Rahul's own "Vote chor, gaddi chhodd" taunt at the NDA government.
The dissent underscores the deep disconnect between the central leadership and the local cadre, even at the last leg of the election campaign. In recent days, senior leaders like Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel were parachuted in to manage the fallout, both within the party and with allies like RJD. Hemant Soren, who walked with Rahul in Bihar in a show of strength, eventually walked out and decided not to contest elections.
But through it all, Rahul has remained absent.
BJP's blitz
Meanwhile, BJP has turned Bihar into a campaign battlefield.
Prime Minister Modi has led from the front with rallies in Samastipur and Begusarai, urging voters to deliver a "record-breaking victory." Home minister Amit Shah has addressed meetings in Siwan and Buxar, while BJP president JP Nadda has courted intellectuals in Vaishali. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has been roped in to hold over 20 rallies.
The optics are unmistakable, a full-spectrum show of power and coordination.
Rahul's partner, Tejashwi Yadav, has also been a relentless presence on the ground, addressing multiple rallies a day. When asked about Rahul’s absence, he sidesteps diplomatically, but the contract remains too stark to miss.
The Chhath countdown
Even after literally no presence till now, Congress insists that its campaign will finally shift gears after Chhath Puja (October 27). The party’s manifesto, focusing on social justice and women's welfare, is scheduled for release on October 28.
He is scheduled to address his first political rally along with Tejashwi Yadav on October 29. The duo will hold a joint rally in Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga.
His late entry may well be planned. But ask any political pundit and they will tell you that in any election, presence on the ground matters the most, and right now, that is nowhere to be seen.
So, just 10 days before Bihar goes to the first phase of polling, the question is simple: Why so late, Rahul?
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