From the Pataliputra of Ashoka and Chanakya to the Patna of Lalu Prasad and Nitish Kumar, it’s clear that the Arthashastra, or Chanakya’s ancient treatise on statecraft and politics, could only have been written in Bihar. After all, who better understand the shastra of politics than the Biharis who have played the game of thrones for longer than almost anyone else in the subcontinent? Chanakya’s famous formula ‘saam daam dand bhed’ – or charm, pay, threaten or divide – as the mantra of rajniti could only have been written by a son of Bihar. That’s why Chanakya or Kautilya is the most famous Bihari from Patna to Pakistan. In Bihar they eat sattu and they know a thing or two Read More
