A piece in which I'm chewing on the idea of 'jungle raj' or the law of the jungle, how and when it applies depends on what kind of animal you are, I suppose.
Here's an extract that mentions the other kind of kidnapping that used to happen in Bihar:
In Bihar, there was another twist on the kidnapping theme - a tradition called "pakadwa vivaah" whereby men were kidnapped and forced into a wedding. I recall a conversation in Delhi a few years ago where a man spoke of having to travel through Bihar for his job. He wore the cheapest khaddar shirts, never had more than a couple of hundred rupees in his pocket and to anyone who asked, he would say he was already married. He was more worried about a gunpoint wedding than kidnapping for ransom.
This was not Lalu Yadav's doing...
