After Amit Shah talks of ‘inflated’ Yadav numbers, BJP puts its best Yadav foot forward

By evening, RJD chief Lalu Prasad had reacted, saying: “An attempt is being made to split the Yaduvanshis (Yadavs).” The Yadavs are the bulwark of the RJD’s vote bank in the state, apart from Muslims, together making up around 32% of the state’s population as per the recent caste survey.

The JD(U) brings in OBCs other than Yadavs, apart from the EBCs and Mahadalits courted by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, making a solid support base for the Mahagathbandhan. The Congress and Left are also part of the coalition.

Among the prominent BJP Yadav leaders at the Yaduvanshi Milan event in Patna were Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, former Union minister Ram Kripal Yadav, former Bihar minister Nand Kishore Yadav, MLC Nawal Kishore Yadav, MP Ashok Yadav, MLAs Pranav Yadav, J P Yadav, Shyambabu Yadav, Pawan Yadav, Gayatri Devi and Srilal Yadav.

In another attempt to ensure that the Yadavs, the single largest caste group as per the survey, did not take affront, BJP state executive member Randhir Yadav said Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks regarding inflation of Yadav and Muslim numbers in the caste survey had been “wrongly interpreted”. “What he meant was that the RJD has been trying to use Muslims and Yadavs as a block vote. The RJD is under a false impression that together with the Kurmi votes, it has an assured 35% vote bank in Bihar. We’re trying to show the mirror to the RJD, which should recall the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, in which a number of Yadavs voted for the BJP,” Randhir, who was earlier in the RJD, said.

The Yaduvanshi Milan event provided Rai, who has been lying low in state politics after Kushwaha leader Samrat Choudhary was elevated as BJP state president, a fresh opportunity to position himself as a future leader of the party in Bihar. Invoking Lord Krishna and Lord Rama, and calling himself a small “santri (guard or soldier)” in Team Narendra Modi, Rai asked why Lalu hadn’t picked any of the RJD’s then senior leaders like Jagdanand Singh, Ramchandra Purve, or even Yadav leaders like Ranjan Yadav, Hukumdev Narayan Yadav or Gajendra Himanshu, when he was sent to jail in connection with the fodder scam cases, rather than picking his wife.

“Any of these leaders would have been more capable than Rabri Devi… Lalu can’t think beyond family,” he said, adding, “I also want to ask Lalu why the Yadavs still have dismal educational and employment status, why less than 1.5% of the Yadavs are in government jobs.”

Rai also emphasised that this is why PM Modi enjoys widespread support among the Yadavs.

Pataliputra MP Ram Kripal Yadav, who was a close Lalu aide for three decades before he joined the BJP ahead of the 2014 polls, invoked the Mahabharata and said: “Time is up for someone (indicating Lalu) to claim that he is the contractor of all Yadav votes. Yadavs have not gained under Lalu’s rule. The coming Lok Sabha elections will be a dharmyuddha (righteous battle), in which Yadavs will be the sarathis (charioteers).”

In the Mahabharata, Lord Krishna, from whom the Yadavs claim to have descended, was the charioteer of Arjuna in the Kurukshetra battle.

Lalu, who also performed Govardhan Puja on Tuesday, said the BJP was trying to “split” the Yadavs, and appealed to the community to defeat “Kansa” (Krishna’s uncle, who tried to kill him according to mythology).

Reacting to BJP leaders organising Govardhan Puja, the RJD chief Wednesday said: “This is nothing but a gathering of Kansas. Let us vow to stand united to ensure that they never succeed in their nefarious designs… Kansa maar vidhwansa karo, Gokul-Mathura raaj karo (Kill Kansa to ensure the rule of Gokul-Mathura).”

RJD national spokesperson Subodh Kumar Mehta told The Indian Express: “The BJP’s discomfort shows that Lalu Prasad is still a phenomenon, whereas the NDA is known for hollow promises… He has brought alienated sections into the mainstream. The nation knows very well that the BJP doesn’t field Muslims. They also try to create a binary based on religion all the time, while most Yadav leaders in Bihar are a product of the Lalu school of thought.”

The Govardhan Puja, organised to celebrate the belief that Lord Krishna lifted the Govardhan mountain with one finger to save his birthplace Gokul from the wrath of Lord Indra, has gained political significance in Bihar after Yadav leaders of various parties began trying to outdo each other in celebrating the festival.