The border is never too far away in Seemanchal, with Bangladesh through West Bengal and with Nepal. You see it in the Bengali on signboards, and hear it in the frequent use of the term “khela (game)” in conversations with voters who speak the “Surjapuri” dialect, a blend of Bengali, Hindi and Urdu. This region is also home to large Muslim populations — rising from Purnea’s 39 per cent to about 68 per cent in Kishanganj.

Seemanchal’s four districts of Purnea, Kishanganj, Araria and Katihar have been seen to hold up Muslim support for the Congress and the RJD’s famed M-Y formula — until they didn’t. In the 2020 assembly elections, Asaduddin Owaisi ’s AIMIM’s surprise victories in five seats all came in this region, contributing to the BJP -led NDA’s upper hand in Seemanchal and in Bihar

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