Criminalisation of Politics in Bihar

Former Bihar DGP D. P. Ojha is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from the Begusarai constituency in Bihar in the 14th Lok Sabha Electionson the "Clean Up Bihar" platform.

This is how the Police officer ended up contesting the elections.

Ojha had gallantly fought against the corrupt elements in the state administration of Bihar and achieved a measure of stardom when he succeeded in arresting the notorious Siwan RJD MP Mohammed Shahabuddin last year. It was on July 30 that Ojha first told the media that the police were going to pursue criminal cases pending against the notorious RJD MP

With Ojha's growing voice against the status quo, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders had formed a coalition, for obvious reasons, demanding immediate removal of the DGP accusing him of violating the police code of conduct. The news did not come as surprise to most political watchers who had expected this for last several weeks particularly when Ojha called the Bihar rulers as a bunch of "lafanges" (hoodlums).

He was fired from his post by the Rabri government in December last year on 5th December. He had won widespread acclaim for his brutal honesty in his criticism against the leaders and ministers of Bihar.

He was replaced by an alleged Shahabuddin sympathizer W. H. Khan, the DGP of state Military Police.

The sacked DGP came into limelight after submitting a 100-page report on Siwan Mohammad Shahabuddin revealing his links with Pakistan's ISI and other international criminal gangsOjha was then offered the charge of Director General Civil Defence but he categorically rejected the generosity and said he would rather seek voluntary retirement from the service.

His hope to secure a nomination from the NDA to contest the coming Lok Sabha election was shattered with none of the parties accepting his candidatureand he will now contest as an independent candidate from Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency in north Bihar.Ojha says that whoever decides to support him or not, there would be no retreating from the mission started by him to expose the prevailing politician- mafia nexus in the state which threatens to sweep away the very objective of the country's democratic set up.

He claimed that he enjoyed full confidence of the people, "Contesting the election is a part of my larger battle against the prevailing politician-criminal-bureaucrat nexus. It is just a matter of transmitting the confidence of people into votes." He said his campaign against criminal-politicians nexus would continue even if the lost the election.