Rahul Gandhi Ensures A “Pucca House” For Cong’s Tribal Face In Bihar

Even as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is moving in Bihar on ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’, he is being hailed as ‘compassionate’ and dubbed ‘a leader of the poor and the needy’ after he secretly got a new pucca house built for party member Bhagirath Manjhi, a resident of Gaya in Bihar. Bhagirath Majhi is the son of Dashrath Manjhi, known as the ‘Mountain Man’ for having cut a large mountain block to build a road to his native place, Gehlaur in Gaya, all by himself. As per the Bihar government records, Dashrath had carved a path — 110 m long, 9.1 m wide and 7.7 m deep — through a ridge of hills using only a hammer and chisel. Dashrath completed the daunting task single-handedly with the sole objective of connecting his remote and inaccessible village with the Wazirganj block in Gaya district. Bhagirath Manjhi, considered influential among the local tribals and someone who has an inclination for politics, had joined the Congress in January 2025 in a jolt to the ruling JDU, which he had joined in 2023. On June 6, Rahul visited the mud hut of Bhagirath, sat with the family, shared coconut water and listened to their concerns. Rahul then asked the local leaders to ensure that a brick house was built in place of the mud hut and provided funds for the same. Over the past months, Rahul had been engaging with local icons, marginalised communities and symbolic figures besides holding ‘Save Constitution’ conclaves to regain political ground in Bihar, where assembly elections are due in October-November. Bhagirath Manjhi, who had attended the ‘Save Constitution’ meet in Bodh Gaya, may well get a Congress ticket to contest the upcoming Assembly elections from the Bodh Gaya constituency.