Randhir Prasad (died 1980) was an Indian politician and businessman from
Giridih
Giridih is headquarters of the Giridih district of Jharkhand state, India. The city of Giridih is known for its industrial and health sectors, as well as its scenic beauty. Giridih houses the Giridih Coalfield which is one of the oldest coalfi ...
,
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...
. He was one of three sons of a wealthy family. He served as general secretary of the Students Union at Giridih College. From 1971 onwards he served as chairman of the Giridih municipality. He owned hundreds of liquor shops across several states, including Bihar,
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
and
Orissa
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of S ...
.
In Giridih, Prasad was seen as a
Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is de ...
-like figure, known for his philanthropic actions towards the local community. His image was tarnished by a scandal in 1979, after 233 people in
Dhanbad District
Dhanbad district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India, and Dhanbad is the administrative headquarters of this district. As of 2011, it is the second most populous district of Jharkhand (out of 24), after Ranchi. It a ...
died from liquor poisoning. However, his reputation in Giridih remained solid and he was nominated as the
Congress (I)
Indian National Congress (Requisitionists) was created in 1969; it was created and led by Indira Gandhi. Initially this party was known as Congress (R), but it soon came to be generally known as the New Congress or Syndicate.
The letter 'R' s ...
candidate for the Giridih seat in the 1980 Bihar Legislative Assembly election. This was the first time he contested an election to the Legislative Assembly.
Randhir Prasad died in a jeep accident on May 16, 1980, just two weeks ahead of the election, at the age of 35.
The election in Giridih was countermanded and held in 1981. His widow,
Urmila Devi, stood as candidate for the seat. Devi, with no previous political experience, managed to defeat the incumbent veteran
Communist Party of India politician
Chaturanan Mishra
Chaturanan Mishra (7 April 1925 – 2 July 2011)''The Economic Times''. Former Minister Chaturanan Mishra passes away' was an Indian politician and trade unionist. Mishra, who was born in Nahar, Madhubani District,Lok Sabha. Biographical Ske ...
with 55.71% of the votes in the constituency.
[Mishra, S. N., L. M. Prasad, and Kushal Sharma. ]
Tribal Voting Behaviour: A Study of Bihar Tribes
'. New Delhi: Concept Pub. Co, 1982. pp. 75-76
References
1980 deaths
Indian National Congress politicians
Year of birth missing
Indian National Congress politicians from Bihar
{{Bihar-INC-politician-stub