Is Lalu Prasad's son Tej Pratap inching closer to NDA? Speculations rife amid Bihar polls

Amid the ongoing Bihar Assembly elections, a meeting between RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav’s estranged elder son Tej Pratap Yadav and BJP MP Ravi Kishan at Patna airport on Friday has set tongues wagging in political circles.

 

Tej Pratap, the Hasanpur MLA who was expelled from the RJD earlier this year, is contesting as an independent in the Mahua constituency, where polling was held in the first phase on November 6.

 

The former state minister has also floated a new outfit, Janshakti Janata Dal (JJD), following his expulsion over a controversy over his personal life.

 

Tej Pratap’s encounter with Ravi Kishan at the airport has now sparked speculation that he is getting closer to the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) camp.

 

Asked if he would join hands with the BJP, Tej Pratap said: “I will be with anyone who removes unemployment”.

 

"It is just that I am meeting Ravi Kishan for the first time. Of course, he and I are on the same page when it comes to our devotion to Lord Shiva. Both of us wear the 'tika' on our foreheads,” he said.

 

Ravi Kishan, an actor-turned-politician, was more candid in his response as he said Tej Pratap’s entry into the NDA is not unlikely.

 

“Anything can happen. BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi keep doors open for all devotees of Bholenath, who are devoted to selfless service and not in politics because of a personal agenda,” he said.

 

Tej Pratap’s decision to contest as an independent has posed a major challenge to the RJD in Mahua, which was, otherwise, a party stronghold.

 

He had won from Mahua in 2015 as an RJD candidate. In the 2020 polls, he chose to contest from the Hasanpur constituency in the Samastipur district and beat two-time sitting JD(U) MLA Raj Kumar Ray by 21,139 votes.

 

This time, he is facing RJD candidate and sitting MLA Mukesh Kumar Raushan and LJP’s Sanjay Singh in Mahua.

 

In the first phase, voting was held in 121 constituencies across 18 states on Thursday. The remining seats will go to polls on November 11, with the counting set to take place on November 14. 

 

India