Two established leaders of Madhesh, Rajendra Mahato, 67, and Mahendra Raya Yadav, 88, have been contesting elections, sometimes as fellow travelers in the same party, sometimes as competitors from different parties. These leaders, who have been fellow travelers in the Rastriya Janata Party since April 2074, have been participating in the elections as competitors after the party split in 2076.

Both leaders have been competing in the election arena by changing parties, constituencies and districts. Since they are established faces in Madhesh, the competition between the two has become a battle of prestige. Since both have a grip on geography and community, the election results have been unpredictable. Mahato is currently the chairman of the Rastriya Mukti Party (RAMUPA) Nepal, Yadav is the leader of the NCP. Both are competing in Sarlahi-2 this time.

Rabin Mahato from the Rashtriya Mukti Party and Dr. Saroj Yadav of the Congress are competing against them. Yadav's hold is visible in rural and Yadav-dominated areas. Mahato's influence is considered strong in the district headquarters and the Vaishya community. This time, the competition is becoming interesting because of these young candidates.

The Congress has put forward Yadav to maintain its hold. Dr. Yadav is familiar with district politics. Although a doctor by profession, Yadav, who has been active in the social and political sectors for a long time, has been nominated by the Congress. He was the vice-chairman of the district working committee. His father, Congress leader Nagendra Rai, is an experienced politician.

The Rashtriya Mukti Party has nominated Mahato as its candidate in Sarlahi-2. Mahato is reaching out to voters with the slogan of ‘change and alternative politics’. He has made corruption prevention, good governance, and youth self-employment his election campaign. His strategy is to turn the disaffection towards traditional parties to his advantage. ‘Whether urban or rural, the support of young voters is my strength,’ he said, ‘Now a radical change in the country is possible with the new generation and change.’ Here, Jayakaran Mahato, who became the candidate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 2079, had secured 569 votes.

In the 2079 election, Yadav defeated Mahato in Sarlahi-2. Yadav, who contested from the then Maoists, won by getting 23,529 votes. At that time, Mahato, who was the candidate of the LOSPA, had secured 21,518 votes.

Before that, in the 2074 election for the House of Representatives, both these leaders were in the Rastriya Janata Party. Mahato had won by becoming a candidate from Dhanusha-3. Mahato had secured 30,750 votes. Bimalendra Nidhi of the Nepali Congress had secured 27,847 votes. Yadav won in Sarlahi-2 in that election. He secured 29,191 votes. His nearest competitor, Jangilal Ray Yadav of the Nepali Congress, had secured 18,976 votes.

In the second Constituent Assembly election in 2070, Mahato from the Nepal Sadbhavana Party and Yadav from the Tarai Madhesh Sadbhavana Party faced each other in Sarlahi-4. Yadav won by securing 11,534 votes, while Mahato secured 8,790 votes. In the first Constituent Assembly election in 2064, Mahato had won in Sarlahi-4 by securing 17,073 votes as a candidate of the Nepal Sadbhavana Party. His nearest competitor, Ramchandra Ray of the then Tamalopa, had secured 8,752 votes.

Silent in power, loud on the streets Mahato

Mahato is among those who keep moving around the leadership levels of various parties. When in power, he is silent and shouts loud slogans on the streets. Recently, Terai-centric parties have been forming and breaking up frequently. ‘Despite many efforts to unify the party, I was unable to do so,’ said Mahato. ‘Even though the name of the participating party has changed, the objective has not changed. That is why I have been running a campaign by opening a separate party.’ Mahato has recently formed the National Liberation Party and is running a campaign from Madhesh to the hills.

Mahato, who has been active in politics since the restoration of multi-party politics, has been controversial from time to time due to his statements. When the constitution was promulgated in 2072, leaders including Mahato went to the Nepal-India border area and sat on a dharna. At that time, India had imposed an undeclared blockade on Nepal. ‘I went to the border for the identity of Madhesh. The fight for identity is ongoing,’ he said. ‘The Madhesh movement has not yet been successful. There is no good governance in the country. Corruption has increased.’

Regional development is neglected

The leaders, who have been ministers several times, claim to have brought a wave of development to the district. However, locals say that their constituency has lagged behind in development. Ram Bharose Sah of Salempur said that if he comes to seek votes this time, he will ask for an account of how many promises made in previous elections have been fulfilled or not. ‘We will ask for an account of each and every promise made by the leader that he will make a complete change in the district by building physical infrastructure including education, health, roads,’ he said. ‘The leader has made a festival to rig the election, let’s see this time.’

Mahato was the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies during the interim government after the 2061/062 people’s movement. After winning the first Constituent Assembly election in 2064, he became the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies for the second time. In 2066, he again became the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies in the cabinet of the then UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, and he achieved a hat-trick by becoming the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. In 2068, he became the Minister of Health and Population. In 2078, he became the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Urban Development. But the condition of education, health, and roads in Sarlahi-2, where he is a candidate, is pathetic.

Sarlahi is the district with the highest population below the poverty line in Madhesh after Rautahat. There is 26.70 percent poverty here. The literacy rate in this area is lower than the national average of 76.2 percent. Although the number of government schools seems sufficient, there is a lack of quality education and physical infrastructure. There is a district hospital in the district headquarters, Malangwa. However, there is a lack of skilled manpower (doctors) and equipment in health posts in rural areas. ‘Look at the condition of the district headquarters itself. If someone falls ill, they have to be taken to Chitwan and Kathmandu for treatment, there are no well-equipped hospitals and doctors,’ said Jagdish Mahato, a laborer driving a cart in the district headquarters.

Although the construction of the postal highway has provided some relief, the internal roads are unpaved. The problem of internal roads becoming muddy during the rainy season and traffic being disrupted due to the lack of proper drainage arrangements, said Dr. Saroj Yadav, the Congress candidate from Sarlahi-2. ‘There is a problem of drowning. The situation in the district headquarters is not good,' he said, 'development work in education, health, roads and other areas will have to be done.'

Both Mahato and Yadav are keen to change parties. Yadav admits that he is among those who change parties. 'Despite getting an identity, Madhesh has not yet been able to get its rights,' Yadav said, 'I worked for 18 years in a Madhesh party. After completing the mission, I returned to the left.'

Former professor Yogendra Yadav says that the election results may be different this time as the people are fed up with parties with old thinking and old mentality. 'Yesterday, people from my caste used to win by counting the number of people from my caste and going through caste politics, but the people's problems were the same,' he said, 'Now the situation has changed with the new generation and Gen-G movement. This time, it would not be surprising if results that no one had imagined come out of Madhesh.'

There are 31 candidates in Sarlahi-2. Of these, 17 are independents. This area includes the district headquarters Malangwa Municipality, Haripur Municipality and Wards 8, 9 and 10 of Kabilasi Municipality and Ward 15 of Ishworpur Municipality. Kadauna Rural Municipality, Wards 5, 6, 7 and 8 of Bishnupur Rural Municipality, Brahmapuri Rural Municipality, Parsa Rural Municipality are also included.