Fact Check: Bihar polls – Surajbhan Singh calls people of Bhumihar community ‘mad’? No, claim is false
A video has been circulating on social media, claiming it shows RJD leader Surajbhan Singh calling the people of the Bhumihar community ‘mad’.
By - Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:The video shows RJD leader Surajbhan Singh calling the people of the Bhumihar community mad.
Fact:The claim is false. The viral video is clipped. In the full video, Singh describes the Bhumihar community as ‘intelligent people’ multiple times. He used the word ‘mad’ in an interrogative tone while responding to a question, not as a derogatory remark on the community.
Hyderabad: A high-stakes battle has erupted in Bihar’s Mokama between two powerful leaders belonging to the Bhumihar community.
Anant Kumar Singh, aka ‘Chhote Sarkar’, of the Janata Dal United (JDU) faces off against Veena Devi, wife of influential strongman Surajbhan Singh and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate. The clash intensified with Anant Singh’s arrest in connection with the alleged murder of 76-year-old Dularchand Yadav. Mokama is voting in the first phase on January 6.
Meanwhile, a viral video clip from Surajbhan Singh’s interview with journalist Ajit Anjum has sparked controversy. The RJD leader is heard saying, “Bhumihar pagal hai” (Bhumihar is crazy/mad), leading to claims on social media that he called Bhumihar voters ‘mad’.
Sharing the video, an X user wrote, “Bhumihar Pagal Hai” – Surajbhan Singh. Just because Surajbhan went to RJD, now he has started abusing Bhumihars.” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the video is clipped and does not show the full context.
We found the interview with Surajbhan Singh on Ajit Anjum’s YouTube channel, published on November 4. The viral clip appears at the 30:30-minute mark. The conversation (roughly translated from Hindi) goes as follows:
Ajit Anjum: What is happening with Bhumihars? People are saying Bhumihars are going there (towards Anant Singh).
Surajbhan Singh, indirectly referring to the alleged clash between Anant Singh’s convoy and Jan Suraaj’s Piyush Priyadarshi group during the election campaign that led to the death of Dularchand Yadav, said: “Bhumihars are mad? 2-5 boys threw stones and came there as if to create casteism. An atmosphere was created to spoil the environment. This is something to note: why did the Election Commission take such significant action? Why were shots fired? Why was a vehicle run over? You keep saying ‘Bhumihar’ over small matters. Bhumihar is an intelligent caste.”
Ajit Anjum: How many Bhumihars are there in Mokama Vidhan Sabha?
Surajbhan Singh: Whatever Bhumihars are there in Mokama Vidhan Sabha, this is an intelligent caste.
The viral clip omits Surajbhan Singh’s repeated description of the Bhumihar community as ‘intelligent’. A review of the full conversation reveals that the clip is taken out of context—the word ‘mad’ was used in an interrogative tone, not as a derogatory remark against the community.
Therefore, the viral clip misses the context and is being shared to mislead the voters.
