Lalu Prasad among RJD’s star campaigners for by-polls

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, who was released on bail this year after serving four years in prison following his conviction in cases related to the multi-crore fodder scam, was listed as one of the star campaigners for the party’s nominees ahead of the by-elections to Tarapur and Kusheshwarsthan assembly seats on October 30. The names of his son, Tej Pratap Yadav and daughter, Misa Bharti are missing from the list.

The list of 20 RJD star campaigners was submitted to the Election Commission of India on Thursday.

State RJD president Jagdanand Singh said the omission of names of Prasad’s family members had nothing to do with Tej Pratap Yadav’s outbursts. He said the campaigners have been chosen considering the social composition of the constituencies so that the party could connect with the voters more effectively.

“ We have picked leaders for the campaigning who have been regularly working in these two constituencies and have a connect with the electorate so that the party does well,” Singh said.

Prasad’s name tops the list followed by Tejashwi Yadav and Abdul Bari Siddiqui, the RJD’s national principal general secretary. The name of former chief minister and Lalu’s wife Rabri Devi is also missing from the list.Siddiqui said Prasad has approved the list.

The 20 names in the star campaigner list include Lalu Prasad Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav, Abdulbari Siddiqui, Jayprakash Narayan Yadav, Uday Narayan Chaudhary, Shyam Rajak, Bhola Yadav, Tanveer Hassan, Trishan Patel, Lalit Kumar Yadav, Manoj Kumar Jha, Bharat Mandal, Ram Kumar Sahani, Alok Kumar Mehta, Shiv Chandra Ram, Lovely Anand, Chandrahas Chaupal, Bharat Bind, Ramvraksh Sada, Anil Kumar urf Sadhu Paswan.

RJD leader Bhola Yadav said Prasad is expected to address a few election meetings on October 25 and 26 and return to New Delhi. He added all will depend on Prasad’s health condition.

Tej Pratap Yadav and Bharti were the star campaigners for the party in the 2020 assembly polls. Earlier this week, RJD leader Shivanand Tiwary said Tej Pratap Yadav, who has alleged Prasad was being kept “hostage” in New Delhi, was not in the party as he has formed his own outfit, Chhatra Janshakhti Parishad.

Tej Pratap Yadav and Misa Bharti could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar and Janata Dal (United) president , whose party seeks to retain both the seats, has accused Prasad of steering the RJD’s election campaign from the jail during the 2020 assembly elections. Taking potshots over Prasad’s planned campaigning, he said, ”He (Lalu Prasad] used to run his party and plan election drives sitting in the jail.”

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Nikhil Anand said Tej Pratap Yadav’s omission suggests he has been ousted from the party. He added there is a clear indication that Bharti would not get another Rajya Sabha term. “It is also unfortunate that state president Jagdanand Singh’s name is also missing. It shows how senior leaders are just being side-lined.”