As Bihar's Election War Rages On, a Dogfight in the Skies

Patna: As Bihar hosts this year's most intense political war, the skies of the state are ringing with the claps of helicopters hired by various political parties to ferry their leaders on a breathless campaign.

The consensus among those flying Bihar's star politicians this assembly election is that Lalu Yadav's reputation on the ground, follows him in the air as well. Whether it is about having a mid-air paan or purportedly being reluctant to wear safety belts, the Rashtriya Janata Dal chief is unlike most other politicians whizzing over the state, pilots say.

But Mr Yadav and his chopper also rank among the top crowd-pullers in an election where some leaders hold as many as five rallies in a day, making these machines seem nearly indispensable, they say.
 Even though the Bihar election is too close to call by all accounts, if there is one battle that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party is winning, it's is the battle of the skies. The BJP has hired as many as six choppers for its state and national leaders, and another three for allies like Ram Vilas Paswan.

When asked about the increased use of choppers, the Lok Janshakti Party leader, like many of his peers, is a little dismissive and tries to preserve a son-of-the-soil image. "Nothing much, helps us cover many meetings, that are about it," he says.

Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) has hired three choppers while ally Lalu Yadav is campaigning in a chopper for his Rashtriya Janata Dal. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi also use helicopters on their campaign trail.

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Rented out by private companies based in Delhi and Mumbai, officials say the operating costs per hour for these choppers vary from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh, meaning the cost for political parties runs into crores.

While political parties are not willing to reveal exactly how much they are spending on the choppers or where they get the funding for them, they say they will submit these details to the Election Commission once the polls are over on November 5.

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