When RJD supremo Lalu Prasad flashed a victory sign at a hastily called media briefing on Thursday after most exit polls seemed to suggest a tilt in favour of the Grand Alliance, it seemed like a case of jumping the gun. By Sunday afternoon the Grand Alliance came tantalisingly close to Lalu’s prediction of over 190 seats for the political grouping.
More importantly, the grand alliance’s thumping victory in Bihar has revived the political career of Lalu, establishing him firmly as a key player in not only state politics but also as a mascot for secular forces taking on the BJP at the national stage.
Lalu could now demand the post of deputy chief minister for his son Tejashwi Yadav — who won in Raghopur — besides plum ministerial portfolios in Nitish Kumar’s government, sources said.
Given that his party won more seats than the JD(U), he could function as de-facto chief minister, undermining Kumar who is a stickler for rules in matters of governance, including transfers of bureaucrats.
“Lalu will be playing the role of a policy maker and ensure policies are implemented to suit his social justice agenda,” said Jagdanand Singh, a close aide of the RJD chief and a former minister.
Political pundits are describing Lalu’s move offering unconditional support to Nitish Kumar last year to take on the BJP in the state as a political masterstroke.
But what will continue to haunt Lalu is the possibility of returning to jail in case of an adverse ruling on his bail in the fodder scam cases. The same fear had seen the astute politician elevating his wife Rabri Devi as CM after his incarceration in 1997.
Also, speculation is rife that the RJD chief will press for a Rajya Sabha berth for his eldest daughter Misa Bharti, who lost from Patliputra parliamentary seat in 2014.
Politically speaking, the victory has reinforced his image as a key Opposition leader, giving him a greater say on the national political platform where he was relegated to a fringe player after the drubbing he suffered in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
The RJD chief’s plans to launch an anti-BJP campaign from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi is seen as a tactical ploy to brand himself as a secular leader who managed to stop the saffron brigade’s ‘ashwamedha ghora’ (war horse) in Bihar. This needs to be seen in the backdrop of 1990 when Lalu as the chief minister had stopped BJP patriarch LK Adavni’s rath yatra in Samastipur and rolled out his ‘Mandal vs kamandal’ agenda to checkmate the BJP’s Hindutva line.