The narrow lanes of Shivnandpur village in Balrampur have just enough space for one car to pass at a time. The houses on both sides are mostly single-storey, largely with kuchcha roofs. In one of these houses, with an asbestos roof, mud floor, unplastered walls and a DTH antenna, lives newly elected CPI (M-L) MLA Mahboob Alam, who won by the biggest margin in the recent Bihar elections.