#Biharpolls: here is all that you need to know about the 'famous 5' of NDA

Amidst speculations, predictions, and staggering campaigns, the 16th Bihar Assembly Elections is all set to take off from 12 October 2015.

To ensure its victory in the polls, the Bharatiya Janta Party led National Democractic Allaince has fielded its power-puff figures to woo the voters in the state. Let's have a look at the 'famous five' of NDA.

1.Ram Vilas Paswan

Photo: Patrika

An LLB-graduate, Paswan is the 'Dalit' face of Indian politics and currently serves as the Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution at the Centre.

He won the Lok Sabha elections for the first time in 1977 and was re-elected in 1980, 1984, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2004 and 2014. In 2000, he formed the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

Paswan also holds a Guinness world record for winning with a margin of 4.24 lakh votes when he contested from the Hajipur constituency in 1977.

He was the Minister for Labour and Welfare in 1989 and the Railway Minister in 1996.

2.Sushil Kumar Modi

He is known as the Mr Cool of the National Democratic Allaince. A former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Modi holds a B.Sc (Hons) degree from Patna University and has been an active member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

He served as a General Secretary at Patna University Students Union from 1973 till 1977. He was a member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly from 1990-2004. He was also the leader of Opposition in the Assembly during 1996-2004.

Modi became the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs in the Bihar government in 2000 and was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 2014.

Modi also played an instrumental role in revealing the fodder scam and supporting the formation of Jharkhand.

3.Jitan Ram Manjhi

Photo: Patrika

Considered as a prominent leader of the Dalit community in the state, Manjhi himself belongs to the backward Musahar caste. He comes from a humble background and his parents worked as farm labourers.

Manjhi worked at the Gaya Telephone Exchange after graduating from Magadh University.

His political career started in 1980 when he contested on a Congress ticket and won the Assembly elections. Manjhi served as Chief Minister from 20 May 2014 to 20 February 2015.

However, his elevation as Chief Minister was criticised by several political heavyweights in the state. For example, Sushil Kumar Modi, who is a leader of Opposition in the Bihar State Assembly, termed Manjhi as a puppet Chief Minister, controlled by Nitish Kumar.

Manjhi launched the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) in May 2015, after distancing himself from Nitish Kumar. Now he has aligned with the BJP for the current Assembly elections.

4.Upendra Kushwaha

Photo: Patrika

Currently serving as the MoS Human Resource Development in the Narendra Modi cabinet, Kushwaha is a student of Political Science and the founder of the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).

He got involved in politics when he became the general secretary of the Yuva Lok Dal in 1985 and then its national secretary in 1988. He became a more prominent figure in state politics when he became the general secretary of the Samta Party in 1994 and served till 2002.

Kushwaha was elected to the Bihar Assembly for the first time in 2000 and became the leader of Opposition in March 2004.

In July 2010, he became a member of the Rajya Sabha and also a member of the Committee of Agriculture in August 2010. He formed his own party on 3 March, 2013.

Upendra Kushwaha is not only a social activist turned politician but also a teacher, an educationist, and an agriculturist.

5.Chirag Paswan

Photo: Getty Images

Chirag Paswan, son of Lok Janshakti Party leader Ram Vilas Paswan, is seen as one of the most promising faces among the young politicians in Bihar.

The 32-year-old made his acting debut with the 2011 film Miley Naa Miley Hum, which also starred Kangana Ranaut, Neeru Bajwa and Sagarika Ghatge. But he had to soon part ways with his film career due to his father's illness.

He attended the Air Force Golden Jubilee Institute, in Delhi. He did his B-Tech in computer science from Bundelkhand University, Jhansi.

Chirag played a key-role in patching LJP's relation with NDA. It was due to his efforts that LJP, which could not attain much success in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, won six out of the seven seats it contested in 2014. Chirag won from the Jamui seat with a margin of 85,947 votes and emerged as a key player in the party.