New Delhi:
Lalu Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal, led in his absence by son and political heir Tejashwi Yadav, was routed by the combined forces of Nitish Kumar, Ram Vilas Paswan and the BJP.
In the battle for Bihar’s 40 seats, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United has won on 15 seats and is leading on one. Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janashakti Party won all six seats it contested.
Two parties of the four-member alliance spearheaded by Tejashwi Yadav are leading on two seats. But the RJD failed to open its account in the state in its worst performance since it was formed three decades ago.
In the 2014 assembly election, Lalu Yadav’s party won four seats. It is also the single largest party in the state assembly.
Tejashwi Yadav has been leading the party since his father was jailed last year in a corruption case. The former cricketer had been at the receiving end of considerable sibling rivalry from elder sister Misa Bharati and brother Tej Pratap Yadav, instances of which often made it to headlines.
But the 29-year-old, with his tweets and sharp comments, had drawn attention as one of the promising Gen-Next leaders in the state. But that did not translate into votes and polling was held in Bihar in all seven phases from April 11 to May 19.
In a tweet this evening, Tejashwi Yadav said, “Heartiest congratulations to Narendra Modi with due respects to the popular mandate. Hope the Prime Minister will pay adequate attention to jobs, agriculture and economy in his fresh tenure and live up to the expectations of the people”.
In another tweet, Mr Yadav also promised to remain “steadfast in the principles of Gandhi, Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan and Karpoori Thakur”.
The RJD’s record low comes as the opposition suffered a stunning defeat at the hands of the BJP. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP has crossed the 300-mark in Lok Sabha, a substantial rise over the 282 seats it won in 2014.
Questions about properties in the name of Tejashwi Yadav were what ended the Grand Alliance, formed ahead of the 2015 elections to keep the BJP out of power. Lalu Yadav, a rival-turned ally of Nitish Kumar, had refused to answer any.
Nitish Kumar’s prompt turnaround – forming a government with the BJP within 24 hours of ending the Grand Alliance – has turned Tejashwi Yadav into one of his sharpest critics. Ahead of the election, he had told NDTV that Nitish Kumar has lost credibility on his home turf Nalanda.
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