Simultaneous polls ‘conspiracy’ to finish regional parties: Lalu Prasad Yadav

Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi Prasad in Rajgir Tuesday. PTI

RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Tuesday said the NITI Ayog’s suggestion to hold Lok Sabha and Assembly polls simultaneously could be a “conspiracy to finish regional parties”.  Lalu, speaking at the three-day training camp-cum-national executive of the party at Rajgir, exhorted party workers to chant “Sitaram or Siyaram” to counter BJP’s “Jai Shri Ram”.  The RJD is looking at giving a bigger organisational role to deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad for the 2019 Lok Sabha preparations in its bid to “work on a national projection” of Lalu’s son. Tejashwi will address a session on the party’s preparation for the next Lok Sabha polls. The three-day session, being attended by over 2,000 party workers from across the state, is being seen as an attempt to rebrand the RJD.

Lalu reiterated his call for Opposition unity. “Even Nitish and I had been political adversaries for a long time but we came together under certain political circumstances to defeat the BJP. We need to replicate the Bihar-type Grand Alliance at the national level”, he said. He asked party leaders to desist from making unwarranted and irresponsible statements against alliance leaders.

He said: “NITI Ayog’s suggestion to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls is a conspiracy to finish regional parties. We will oppose any such move.” He exhorted party workers not to allow the BJP to prevail over others. “If they say Jai Shri Ram, you should say Sitaram or Siyaram,” Lalu said.

The RJD discussed the importance of training, concept of social justice and relevance of B R Ambedkar and Ram Manohar Lohia in terms of social empowerment. RJD national spokesperson Manoj Kumar Jha said: “It is people who have given the bracket of MY (Muslim-Yadav) to us. We have to fight this perception because the RJD stands for all weaker sections of the society.”