PATNA: The NDA will hold a rally in Patna on Saturday in an attempt to expand its support base among extremely backward castes (EBCs). The state will go to polls next year.EBCs constitute 36% of the state’s population and they are considered as a strong support base of CM Nitish Kumar’s JD (U). Nitish became popular among EBCs after he provided reservations and launched education and welfare schemes for them during his tenure as CM.However, the political scenario is undergoing change with EBCs exploring options to meet their ambitions. EBCs are the largest group in the caste survey data released last year.In caste-centric Bihar politics, RJD chief Lalu Prasad ruled the state for 15 years on the strength of his Muslim-Yadav (MY) equation and also by entering into tactical alliance. Nitish, too, did the same by endearing himself to upper castes, non-Yadav OBCs, EBCs and Dalits by switching sides, sometimes sharing power with RJD and sometimes with BJP.
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