Congress insiders say the “real campaign” will start after the Chhath festival, Rahul will also begin campaigning
Amid the high-voltage Bihar election’ campaign, one question echoes across the political chatter — where is Rahul Gandhi? While fatigue with Nitish Kumar’s long rule gave the Mahagathbandhan a natural edge and Tejashwi Yadav a clear pitch to promise change, the alliance’s internal cracks seem to be revealing. And at the center of this unease is the Congress’s invisible campaign and Rahul Gandhi.
The BJP has turned Bihar into a stage for its top brass — Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and a host of regional heavyweights — with rallies dominating headlines. Tejashwi Yadav is crisscrossing districts with roadshows, and Prashant Kishor remains a constant presence in the media. Yet, Rahul Gandhi, who only weeks ago marched through blistering heat during his Voters Adhikar Yatra, has been conspicuously absent.
His last public event in Bihar was the yatra’s finale at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan on September 1. Since then, the Congress leader has been seen everywhere but the state — from a pizza outlet in Gurugram and a trip to Colombia to public appearances in Assam and Old Delhi. When the Mahagathbandhan named Tejashwi its CM face on October 23, the press backdrop bore only his image, he was missing there also.
The RJD is contesting 143 of Bihar’s 243 seats, while Congress has fielded candidates in 61. The memory of its poor 2020 strike rate — 19 wins from 70 seats — still lingers. With Rahul missing, local leaders have been left to fend for themselves. Anger over ticket distribution has spilled into open protests, with accusations of corruption and favoritism against the AICC’s Bihar in-charge.
Party insiders say the “real campaign” will start only after the Chhath festival. Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal was quoted as saying that Rahul will hit the trail on October 29 and 30, with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Mallikarjun Kharge following close behind. Joint rallies with Tejashwi are also being planned in Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga, but will it not be too late.
As BJP’s top leaders dominate the state and Tejashwi pushes a solo narrative of change, Congress’s delayed start may prove costly. Observers believe that even a brief show of the Gandhi family’s presence could shift the mood —for now, Bihar’s election scene is buzzing, but without one of its key voices.
