Patna: The Janata Dal (United) is set to mark the 102nd birth anniversary of socialist leader Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur with celebrations across every district of Bihar on January 24, a move the party sees as a way to consolidate support among the extremely backward classes (EBCs).
Until now, Karpoori Jayanti has largely been observed through a centralised programme in Patna. This year, however, the JD(U) has decided to decentralise the commemorations, holding district-level events alongside a main programme at the party’s state headquarters. Chief minister Nitish Kumar is expected to attend the Patna event.
Party leaders say the programmes will focus on highlighting what the Nitish Kumar-led government has done for EBC communities, including measures aimed at political empowerment and welfare schemes. Data and government initiatives are expected to be showcased during the events.
It was on Karpoori Jayanti in a previous year that CM launched the Chief Minister’s Extremely Backward Class Entrepreneurship Scheme, an initiative designed to support self-employment among EBC groups. The JD(U) also recalls the large-scale celebrations held in Patna to mark Karpoori Thakur’s 100th birth anniversary, shortly before he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, a demand the Bihar government had been pressing for years.
To coordinate this year’s programme, the party has formed district-level committees chaired by senior leaders, with preparations to be monitored directly from the state headquarters. The JD(U) has instructed its MLAs, MLCs and MPs to be present at events in their respective districts.
Karpoori Thakur, a former Bihar chief minister, remains a central ideological figure for the JD(U). Party leaders repeatedly stress that CM’s policies for marginalised and backward communities reflect Thakur’s vision of social justice.
In Patna, a joint Karpoori Jayanti programme will be organised at the JD(U) state office by the Patna Metropolitan, Patna Rural and Barh organisational units, with the chief minister attending as the principal guest.
