Who is Mukesh Sahani, VIP chief whose father was brutally murdered in Bihar

A former minister in the Bihar government, Mukesh Sahani leads the Vikassheel Insaan Party.

Vikassheel Insaan Party president and former Bihar minister Mukesh Sahani's father Jitan Sahani was murdered in his house in Darbhanga's Supaul Bazar area. According to reports, Jitan Sahani's body was found in his ancestral house on Tuesday morning.

According to reports, Jitan Sahani was murdered with a sharp weapon. After receiving the news of his father's murder, Sahani left for Patna from Mumbai.

Who is minister Mukesh Sahani?

A former minister in the Bihar government, Mukesh Sahani leads the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), which has a strong support base in the OBC community. Sahani is also known as the “Son of Mallah”. Sahani represents the extremely backward community of Nishads, a collective identity for more than 20 sub-castes including Mallahs, whose livelihood was traditionally linked to the river. The population of Mallahs in Bihar is reportedly about seven per cent. Sahani is also known for being involved in various social and community initiatives, particularly focusing on the welfare of his own community.

Currently, his party VIP is in alliance with the RJD and the Congress in the INDIA Opposition bloc. His party had joined the INDIA bloc before the Lok Sabha elections 2024. The agreement was originally made between Mukesh Sahani and Rashtriya Janata Dal in view of the Lok Sabha elections.

In 1999, at just 18 years of age, Sahni went to Mumbai to escape poverty. He struggled for years before he could gain a foothold in the world of films. Starting off as a salesman, he eventually made an entry into the television and movie industry as a set designer. His company Mukesh Cine World Private Limited had even bagged big-ticket projects like Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Devdas (2002) and Salman Khan-starrer Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015).

Recognition in Bollywood gained him instant attention back home. People urged him to do “something for the community” and then he organised Chhath on a grand scale in 2008.

Eventually, Sahani formed the Nishad Vikas Sangh in 2016 and opened offices in Patna and Darbhanga. He floated the VIP party in 2018.

Before the Lok Sabha elections, a video of Sahani with Tejashwi RJD leader Yadav had surfaced. The video in which both were seen eating fish in a helicopter, during Navratri, had triggered a huge political row.