Lalu Prasad Yadav returns to Patna amid race for caste census, fresh CBI case
Highlight
- Ailing RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav has returned to his home constituency of Bihar.
- He returned to Bihar amid rising political temperature on various issues like caste census
- Lalu Prasad Yadav reached Patna with his elder daughter Misa Bharti
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav has returned to his home constituency of Bihar amid rising political temperatures over the issues of caste census, Rajya Sabha biennial elections and registration of another corruption case against the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). great Bear.
Prasad arrived in Patna with the eldest daughter Misa Bharti, at whose Delhi residence he had stayed after he was released on bail by the Jharkhand High Court last month in the fodder scam cases.
Huge crowd of RJD supporters was present at the airport to welcome the otherwise flamboyant leader, looking sad in a wheelchair with a mask on his face.
The former Bihar chief minister was escorted straight into his car, escorting him to the residence of his wife Rabri Devi, much to the dismay of the waiting journalists.
Prasad’s arrival in Patna from Delhi on Wednesday (May 25) was accompanied by Nitish Kumar, the current chief minister, Union minister and former arch rival of senior JD(U) leader RCP Singh.
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Singh’s future as a Union minister appears to hinge on his re-nomination by the JD(U), which is expected to capture one of the five Rajya Sabha seats. Singh Kumar has a blue-eyed boy, but is said to be not very popular with the rank and file of the JD(U) despite holding several important positions in the party, including the national president.
In the RJD camp, candidates for the Rajya Sabha ticket include Misa Bharti, whose second consecutive term is about to end soon. However, when asked about the issue by reporters, he declined to comment and said that his father, the national president, would make an announcement at an appropriate time.
With its increased numbers in the assembly, the RJD is expected to win two of the remaining two seats. While Misa Bharti’s candidature is almost certain, several names are in the news for the second seat, the most prominent being former party chief Sharad Yadav, who was disqualified as a Rajya Sabha member in 2017.
The Loktantrik Janata Dal, a split faction of Yadav, has merged with the RJD.
The BJP, which is anticipating victory in the remaining two seats, has not yet given the names of its candidates.
The filing of nominations for the Rajya Sabha elections began on Wednesday and will end on May 31 (Tuesday).
Prasad, seen as an OBC icon, is also expected to speak his mind on the thorny issue of caste census.
After the Centre’s flat refusal to count any social group other than SCs and STs, the Nitish Kumar government has agreed to conduct a survey at its own expense.
An all-party meeting is to be held on June 1 to decide on the modalities.
The RJD supremo, who is also known to build political capital out of his legal feuds, will also be followed by CBI raids on his residences in Delhi and Patna last week for any offers. The land for the jobs scandal related to his tenure as railway minister, which ended in 2009.
(with PTI inputs)
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