More than 70 prominent academics, writers, activists, lawyers, and former public servants from across India have come together under the banner of Sajag Nagarik Samaj (Vigilant Civil Society) to appeal to the people of Bihar to vote for the Mahagathbandhan — comprising the RJD, Congress, Left parties, and VIP — in the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections.
In a strongly worded appeal, the signatories said that the coming election “is not an ordinary one like previous polls” but “a battle to save the Constitution and democracy from being subverted.” They alleged that the ruling NDA alliance (BJP–JD(U)–LJP(R)–HAM–RLSP) has resorted to “every moral and immoral means” to influence the elections.
“On one hand, a special voter revision was conducted to manipulate the rolls, while on the other, government funds were used to distribute money to women voters. This is being seen as bribery to secure votes for the NDA,” the appeal said.
The civil society representatives accused the BJP of pursuing “an anti-Constitutional and anti-social agenda” since coming to power. The appeal stated, “The BJP has practically done away with equality and secularism from the constitutional framework and is attempting to bring a new Constitution based on Manuwad, which will push minorities, backward classes, Dalits, Adivasis and women to second-class citizenship.”
The statement further alleged that the government has “reduced the judiciary, Election Commission, and other constitutional institutions to subservience,” while “turning the media into its propaganda machinery.” It accused the Prime Minister of being “indifferent to unemployment, poverty, and inflation” and of turning India into a “fascist, communal and lawless state.”
Referring to the situation in Bihar, the signatories wrote that the JD(U)-BJP rule had left the state “the poorest, most uneducated, and most malnourished in the country.” They said, “Every government office is steeped in corruption, every department mired in scams. The state has turned into a supplier of unskilled labourers for the rest of India.”
The appeal urges voters to “unite to defeat the BJP and its allies to protect democracy, freedom and the constitutional values of justice, equality, and fraternity.” It also advises people not to vote for candidates with criminal backgrounds.
Among those who signed the appeal are Prof. D.M. Diwakar (former director, A.N. Sinha Institute of Social Studies), activist Shabnam Hashmi, former MP Ali Anwar Ansari, social thinker Harilal Yadav, educationist Dr. Meera Mishra, RTI activist Rakesh Rai, and journalist Madan Prasad Singh.
The signatories said their collective action reflects a growing anxiety among civil society members over the “erosion of constitutional morality and democratic institutions,” and called the Bihar election “a test case for saving the Republic.”
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