Folk singer-turned-BJP candidate Maithili Thakur emerged as one of the youngest and captivating winners in the Bihar Assembly Election 2025, securing the Alinagar seat with a decisive lead in a constituency long known for tight contests and shifting political loyalties. Thakur faced a direct contest with RJD’s Binod Mishra, and Jan Suraaj’s Biplaw Chaudhary. Thakur won by 11730 votes, defeating RJD’s Binod Mishra, who emerged as runner up.
Thakur becomes Bihar’s Youngest MLA
At just 25, Thakur’s political debut and victory from Alinagar, a rural, Brahmin-Yadav-Muslim dominated constituency carved out in 2008 is remarkable. The seat has historically oscillated between the RJD and NDA. The seat, once an RJD fortress under veteran Abdul Bari Siddiqui, witnessed a major churn in 2020 when Mishri Lal Yadav of the VIP, then in the NDA, snatched victory by a narrow 3,101 votes.
Alinagar has held three elections since it was created. RJD’s Siddiqui won in 2010 and 2015. In 2020, Mishri Lal Yadav of the VIP (part of NDA earlier) narrowly defeated RJD’s Binod Mishra by 3,101 votes, getting 61,082 votes (38.62%) to Mishra’s 57,981 (36.66%).
What fueled her victory?
Thakur’s win in 2025 is shaped by multiple factors which include the BJP’s growing consolidation in Darbhanga, evident from its 9,842-vote lead in the segment during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, voter fatigue with poor infrastructure, recurring floods, lack of higher education facilities, and her own fresh, culturally rooted appeal as a “daughter of Mithila.”
During her campaign, she effectively positioned herself as a youthful, relatable figure promising faster development and even proposed renaming Alinagar to Sitanagar as a nod to local heritage. Her assurances of dedicated service, “I will serve my people as their daughter” resonated strongly across rural blocks like Alinagar, Tardih, Ghanshyampur and Motipur panchayat, where connectivity challenges and agrarian distress remain key concerns. She met people on the ground and interacted with them.
With RJD’s Binod Mishra, a familiar runner-up from 2020, unable to rebuild the party’s old dominance, and Jan Suraaj’s Biplaw Chaudhary unable to break through, Thakur rode a wave of youth enthusiasm, cultural identity, and BJP’s organisational strength to claim a defining victory. Her win marks a generational shift in Alinagar politics and signals the rising influence of young, grassroots-connected candidates in Bihar’s political landscape.
Thakur’s poll promise to serve the constituency and develop it fully may have been a key factor in her victory as despite its proximity to major towns like Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur, and Madhubani, Alinagar remains overwhelmingly rural, lagging in development with limited public transport and basic infrastructure.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s Gopal Jee Thakur led the Alinagar Assembly segment by 9,842 votes over RJD’s Lalit Kumar Yadav. Although the lead wasn’t very large, it was higher than the NDA’s margin in the 2020 Assembly polls, putting the NDA in a comfortable position for the 2025 elections.
Who had won Alinagar in 2020 Bihar Assembly Elections?
Voting in Alinagar took place on November 6 under Phase 1 of Bihar Assembly Elections. In the 2020 Assembly Elections, the Alinagar seat was won by the VIP candidate Mishri Lal Yadav, who secured 61,082 votes. RJD’s Binod Mishra was runner up, who received 57,981 votes. Mishri Lal Yadav’s victory gave them a vote share of 38.62%.
