Patna: Politics is a mighty leveller. An underworld don or a cop who chased him all his life, both have a place here. It embraces all.

With several trigger-happy dons out to prove their mettle in the electoral arena once again, voters in the backwaters of Bihar are a trembling lot.

Where there is crime, there is police. Three former IPS officers are also there to take care of the electors' fears.

Elections 2004-The Drama unfolds...
Political Parties in India

Leading the dons' pack are three-time former MPs Mohammed Shahabuddin and Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav. While the former has been re-nominated to contest the Siwan seat for the fourth time by the State's ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the latter, who had hitherto won elections as independent, has joined Ramvilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP). Both Yadav and Shahabuddin are contesting the polls from behind the bars.

While Yadav, having several criminal cases pending against him, is facing trial in the murder of Communist Party Marxist (CPM) MLA Ajit Sarkar in 1998, Shahabuddin is behind the bars in connection with the killing of a CPI-ML (Communist Party of India-Marxist Lenninist) worker Munna Chaudhary.

Mere number of cases were lodged against Shahabuddin, including that of the murder of Chandrashekhar, former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president, does not explain the fear he inspires in his native Siwan constituency.

There are no posters apart from his in Siwan town and no rival party candidate ventures out to campaign during the day.

The man who once dubbed the mighty Director General of Bihar Police D P Ojha as 'mentally deranged' and, with the political clout he enjoyed, ensured that he was axed, was accompanied by no less a person than RJD boss Laloo Prasad Yadav when he filed his nomination.

Three underworld dons who, after getting elected to the State Assembly as independents, had created a flutter by entering hand-in-hand the Chief Minister's chamber in the house to publicly declare their support for Nitish Kumar in his failed attempt to grab the Chief Ministerial chair in the year 2000, are also fighting the elections.

While Suraj Singh alias Surajbhan Singh, the MLA from Mokama, is contesting as LJP candidate from Balia, Vijay Kumar Shukla alias Munna Shukla and Rajan Tiwari are in the poll arena as independents from Vaishali and Bettiah Lok Sabha constituencies respectively.

Apart from dozens of cases of murder, attempt to murder, extortion and dacoity, they have one thing in common they all are allegedly involved in the killing of Bihar Minister Brijbihari Prasad in 1998 at a Government hospital in Patna.

Anand Mohan, twice MP from Sheohar, whose bloody feud with Pappu Yadav, which left many on both sides dead in the Kosi belt of the State, is contesting once again from Sheohar as Bihar People's Party (BPP) candidate. Among the several cases of murder, attempt to murder and extortion pending against him, Mohan is an accused in the killing of G Krishnaiah, the District Magistrate of Gopalganj in mid 1990s at Muzaffarpur.

Prabhunath Singh, one of the most vocal MPs of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), also has five criminal cases, including that of the murder of RJD MLA from Masrakh, Ashok Singh, in 1995.