Late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s cousin, Divya Gautam, has been named the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation [CPI(ML) Liberation] candidate for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections. Gautam will contest from the Digha assembly seat and is expected to file her nomination on Wednesday.
Who is Divya Gautam?
Divya Gautam is an alumna of Patna University, where she studied Mass Communication. She also worked as an assistant professor at Patna Women’s College for nearly three and a half years. Active in politics since her college days, she was a prominent face of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), the student wing of CPI(ML).
In 2012, she contested the Patna University Students’ Union elections as AISA’s candidate for president and finished second. Later, she cleared the 64th Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam and was allotted the post of Supply Inspector in the Bihar government.
However, Divya chose to pursue social work and research instead of joining the government service. She is currently a Junior Research Fellow (JRF)-qualified PhD scholar.
CPI(ML) Liberation’s role in Bihar politics
The CPI(ML) Liberation is part of the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ (Grand Alliance) in Bihar, which also includes the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress. While the alliance is yet to announce its seat-sharing formula, smaller allies like CPI(ML) have started declaring candidates for constituencies they expect to contest.
Earlier, another Left ally, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI(M), which has two MLAs in the current assembly, announced that both its legislators – Ajay Kumar and Satyendra Yadav – will file their nominations on October 14 and October 18 respectively.
NDA finalises seat-sharing formula
Meanwhile, the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has finalised its seat-sharing plan. Under the arrangement, the BJP will contest 101 out of 243 seats, while Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) has agreed to a proportionate share, withdrawing its earlier demand for a larger portion.
The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) led by Union Minister Chirag Paswan has been allotted 29 seats, while Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha and Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha will each contest six seats.