Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad’s decision to expel his elder son Tej Pratap Yadav from the party and the family for six years during an election year in Bihar has many implications. Tej Pratap is currently an MLA from the Hasanpur constituency. Earlier, he served as Minister of Health and Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. However, he is no stranger to controversies.
In 2020, he had to resign as vice-president of the party following his comments against socialist leader and former Union Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh. His marriage was also steeped in controversy as his wife allegedly accused him of domestic abuse. His expulsion has made it clear that nobody is above the party, even if he is the son of the party supremo.
Despite his public presence on social media, Tej Pratap’s political clout is very limited. Still, the opposition has already started to use this rift. BJP spokesperson Asit Nath Tiwari has said that Tej Pratap has paid the price for telling the truth. Though there is speculation of him joining another party, history shows that rarely has anyone succeeded in building a career after leaving the RJD. Top leaders belonging to the Yadav community, like Ranjan Yadav, Ramkripal Yadav, and Pappu Yadav, couldn’t dent Lalu Prasad’s popularity. They remained confined to their own assembly constituencies. So, even if Tej Pratap tries to defect, it will rarely have any impact.
His expulsion is, nevertheless, good optics against the opposition’s allegation of dynastic politics. That the party and its ideology are above everything, and Lalu is not going to approve of any “irresponsible behaviour” against the values and traditions of the family and the party, undoubtedly gives the RJD a safety net during what is a crucial election year.
Earlier, Tej Pratap had reportedly tried to push for nominations of his own candidates during the 2015 and 2020 assembly elections. He even fought to have an important ministry in 2015 after the party came to power following an alliance with the JD(U). This time, given Tej Pratap’s absence, Tejashwi, as the heir apparent of Lalu Prasad, wouldn’t have such compulsions.
Post-caste census, it has become more difficult for the parties to nominate leaders who could represent their respective constituencies across seats. In this context, internal dissent is the last thing that the RJD wants.
The expulsion, however, does again bring up the question of dynastic politics in social justice parties. Akash Anand’s expulsion-return-expulsion-return and the occasional talk of Nitish Kumar’s son as his heir apparent, among other cases, show that dynastic politics has indeed ensnared these social justice parties.
One may question the political credentials of Tej Pratap. Unlike Tejashwi, he doesn’t seem to have any clout among people, despite his claim of being “Krishna” for his brother, whom he called “Arjuna”. Is Lalu Prasad’s decision a welcome move towards course correction? It is. Only if, it is a political decision, not merely a result of a family feud.
The writer is former Director, A N Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna
