Shahabuddin's son tries luck in Siwan

In the dusty lanes and bustling markets of Siwan, the name of Mohammad Shahabuddin, a former don-turned-lawmaker, still hangs like a spectre over every political conversation, more than five years after his death.

- Subhash Pathak

His son Osama Shahab, a law graduate from UK, is in the electoral fray from Raghunathpur assembly constituency in the district as a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate.

A two-time MLA and four-term Lok Sabha MP, Shahabuddin, who once ruled Siwan as his fiefdom, died in May 2021 in Delhi's Tihar Jail, while serving a life sentence for multiple kidnapping and murders,

He was booked in 45 cases, including the 1996 attempted murder of superintendent of police SK Singhal, in which he was convicted, and 2004 broad daylight double murder.

Despite his death, his shadow of fear looms large over Siwan.

“Saheb’s shadow hasn't faded; it's Osama who's stepping into it, but no one forgets the fear,” Raju Sah, a tea stall owner in Siwan Sadar, says, recalling the terror of the mafioso-turned-politician in the 1990s.