Lalu, Rahul to share dais in first rally of INDIA bloc in Bihar after Nitish exit

This will be the first time since the formation of the INDIA bloc in June 2023 where Rahul and Lalu will be sharing the dais at a rally.

In January this year, Lalu and his son Tejashwi Prasad were unable to attend Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Purnea because of ED summons. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar had just switched to NDA camp on January 28. Now Leader of Opposition Tejashwi, however, had attended Rahul’s public meeting in Rohtas last week.

Jagdanand Singh said: “The INDIA bloc’s mega rally will set the tone for the Lok Sabha elections. We are expecting a very good crowd turnout.”

RJD national spokesperson Subodh Kumar Mehta told The Indian Express: “Tejashwi Prasad Yadav had rightly said in the Bihar Assembly during the trust vote that the RJD, Congress, and the three Left parties will prove a formidable political combination in Bihar. With Nitish Kumar, there had always been a trust deficit. His exit from the INDIA bloc is good riddance,” Mehta said.

A Congress leader said Rahul’s visit to Bihar thrice in two months will boost the morale of the cadre and energise the national Opposition alliance.

Meanwhile, Kalyanpur MLA Maheshwar Hazari, who Wednesday resigned as Assembly Deputy Speaker, might be in contention for a ministerial berth in the next cabinet expansion.