Tejashwi Yadav's masterstroke: Fields family-turned-foe Chandrika Rai's niece Karishma Rai in Parsa

In a stunning political move, RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav has attempted to reset   political differences he had with RJD leader Chandrika Rai’s family by giving a ticket for his niece Karishma Rai in the Parsa seat. Tejashwi’s equations with senior Yadav leader Chandrika Rai soured following his brother Tej Pratap’s  marital discord with Rai’s daughter Aishwarya.

Following the breakdown of the marriage and subsequent dispute, the Yadav  family sided with Tej Pratap, angering Chandrika Rai, who left the RJD to join  JD(U). By fielding Karishma, Tejashwi wants to rebuild the rapport with Rai’s family and his supporters, though the divorce case is still pending with the court. Aishwarya also filed a case against her mother-in-law, Rabri Devi, and others for assaulting her and forcing her out of the house.

The Parsa seat in the Saran district has been a strong RJD stronghold for years, and Chandrika Rai, the son of former Bihar Chief Minister Daroga Prasad Rai, first won it in 1985 on a Congress ticket. He later switched to the RJD and was re-elected in 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005 (Feb), and 2015 on an RJD ticket.

However, the marriage soured the equations. Within six months of tying the  knot in May 2018, the relationship hit a bottleneck. In the 2020 elections, Rai was fielded by the RJD from Parsa. He and his family actively canvassed against  RJD candidate Chhote Lal Rai, highlighting the “ill-treatment” meted out to his daughter by the Yadav family. However, Rai lost to Chhote Lal Rai, with RJD retaining the seat. Chhotelal defeated Chandrika Rai by 17,000 votes.

Now, five years later, Tejashwi Yadav has completely changed the equation by fielding Dr. Karishma Rai from the Parsa seat in Saran district. Tej Pratap too is no longer with the party. He is contesting this assembly election by forming his own party. Tej Pratap Yadav will file his nomination from the Mahua constituency on Thursday.

Who is Karishma Rai?

Karishma is the daughter of Chandrika Rai's elder brother Vidhanchandra Rai and the cousin of Tej Pratap's estranged wife Aishwarya Rai. Tejashwi Yadav  had inducted Karishma into the RJD just before the election at an event marked by much fanfare.

On joining the party, Karishma had described Tejaswi's elder brother and her  brother-in-law, Tej Pratap, as the most beloved leader of Bihar.

Karishma Rai will face sitting MLA Chhotelal Rai in Parsa. Interestingly, Chhotelal is currently with JD(U), after switching parties.

 

India