How Sushant Singh Rajput’s legacy shapes a Left candidate’s Bihar assembly election bid in Patna

Punaichak/Patna: Walking through narrow lanes littered with garbage and clogged drains, a young woman from the group announces over a loudspeaker, “Aapka button kahan dabega, teen taara jahan rahega.”

It’s 8 AM on a Wednesday. With a hint of October nip in the air, this group of women — with a few men scattered here and there — fan out through Punaichak, an urban neighbourhood in Digha, seeking votes for Divya Gautam for the upcoming Bihar Assembly Elections.

Divya, 34, is the CPI(ML) Liberation candidate for the Digha seat in Patna, which will go to the polls on 6 November - the first of the two election phases. The second phase is scheduled on 11 November. The results will be declared on 14 November.

The poll symbol of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (CPI-ML Liberation)in Bihar is a flag with three stars. The party is a state-recognised party in Bihar, which entitles it to a reserved symbol in the state

As Divya, her neck draped in flower garlands, walks past rows of houses, she gestures toward the overflowing, uncovered drains. “These are the real issues here,” she tells this reporter while campaigning.

What's Sushant Singh Rajput's Connection?

Divya, a theatre artist and former leader of the All India Students' Association (AISA), is also a cousin of the late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Though Divya has tried to stay away from the link, she takes pride in what the ‘Kai Po Che’ actor, who died on 14 June 2020, at his Bandra residence, had achieved in life.

“We could not have imagined that someone would make it so big in Bollywood. That’s what makes us proud, and that’s what matters,” says Divya.

Divya, Bhavya, and Prerna, daughters of Sushant’s mother Usha’s brother, Bhupendra Kumar Singh, are the three cousins with whom Sushant grew up in Patna. Divya had met Sushant in 2019 when he last visited Patna, his hometown.

Sushant’s death case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following demands from the family. Nearly five years after Sushant’s death, the CBI filed the closure report in March 2025, clearing Rhea Chakraborty and other accused individuals named in the FIR.

“He reached there through his own hard work, not because of nepotism. I draw inspiration from him — showing that dedication and effort can bring real change. He is my brother, and I am proud of him. As an artist, I continue with my theatre work while keeping his memory alive,” Divya says as she moves to the next leg of her campaign on Wednesday afternoon.

Who is Divya Gautam?

Born in Saharsa, Divya studied journalism from Patna college, where she was active in theatre and cultural groups. She lost the Patna University Students' Union election in 2012 as a candidate of the AISA. The same year, she was part of ‘Bekhauf Azaadi’, a street play on women's safety after the 2012 Delhi Gangrape case.

Divya has also completed a master's degree in Women’s Studies from TISS, Hyderabad. She served as an assistant professor at Patna Women's College and also worked as a supply inspector at the Food and Consumer Protection Department of the Bihar government before quitting. Divya has acted in Italian dramatist Dario Fo’s plays while pursuing her PhD on ‘Caste, class and masculinity in Bhojpuri stardom’ from BITS Pilani.

Divya has been an active member of Left cultural groups for quite some time. She is known as a theatre artist, academic, and activist before entering the assembly polls this year. While Sushant is her first inspiration, Gautam is also inspired by Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi, whose famous movie Children of Heaven had an impact on her life.

How has Digha voted in the past?

Known for its mango orchards during the British era, Digha is one of the 14 seats in Patna district, falling under the Patna Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, represented by the BJP since 2009, first by Shatrughan Sinha for two terms and, now by Ravi Shankar Prasad.

Comprising six panchayats and 14 wards, Digha is Bihar's largest assembly constituency, with 400 booths and approximately 4 lakh voters. Dominated by the Kayastha caste, Digha has been an NDA stronghold since 2010. Janata Dal United's Punam Devi won in 2010, bagging 62 per cent of the votes. Since then, Sanjeev Chaurasiya of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been winning this seat in two successive elections.

Chaurasiya won the seat in 2015 when JD-U was not an NDA partner. He then defeated JD-U's Rajeev Ranjan Prasad by over 35000 votes. In 2020, Chaurasiya secured 57 per cent of the votes and defeated CPI(ML) L candidate Shashi Yadav, who garnered approximately 30 per cent of the votes for the seat.

Who is Divya up against?

This time, Divya is up against Sanjeev, apart from Ritesh Ranjan Singh alias Bittu Singh from Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj party. “There is some resentment against the sitting MLA Chaurasiya. Also, Prashant Kishor’s party has fielded Bittu Singh, who wanted a BJP ticket. Bittu might damage Chaurasiya’s chances,” said Vikram.

As Divya meets people, she discusses topics such as drainage, cleanliness, health, and education. She also discusses women's rights. “They think they can buy women by giving ₹10,000. What about the urban women who have to depend on their male members to make ends meet,” she says when asked about women-centric schemes by the incumbent Nitish Kumar-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

The CPI (ML) Liberation is part of the opposition alliance 'Mahagathbandhan' in Bihar, which also comprises the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress. In the 2020 Bihar Assembly election, the party secured 12 seats. It also won two Lok Sabha seats from Bihar in the 2024 general election.

The party has fielded 20 candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, nominating all 12 of its sitting MLAs.

“She has been talking about real issues. She comes across as educated women who has good ideas. But as you know, Digha is an urban seat and we know where urban voters of Patna have been voting in last many elections,” says Vikram Anand, a local businessman in the Digha assembly.