RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, currently on the campaign trail for party candidate Bima Bharti in Purnea for the Lok Sabha elections, stirred up a storm with his recent call to voters, urging them to vote for either the INDIA bloc or the NDA, seemingly to counter the candidacy of Rajesh Ranjan, popularly known as Pappu Yadav, a five-time former MP running as an Independent in the constituency, which heads to the polls on April 26 in the second of the seven-phase parliamentary elections.
Addressing a gathering in Purnea, Tejashwi Yadav described the contest as a clash of ideologies between the INDIA bloc and the NDA. He appealed to voters, “This election is a fight between two ideologies – INDIA bloc and NDA. I am here to appeal you to cast your vote in favour of INDIA bloc, and if you don’t want to vote us, then vote for NDA.”
Tejashwi Yadav has earlier accused Pappu Yadav of being a “BJP agent,” alleging that the ruling party funded his 2020 assembly polls campaign.
Tejashwi”s appeal, however, has also left traditional supporters of his father and RJD chief Lalu Prasad in a quandary. A panchayat-level RJD leader, speaking anonymously, told reporters, “We are all committed to our leader Lalu Prasad, but in Purnea, we have been supporting Pappu Yadav. Tejashwi Yadav’s statement has put us in a fix.”
Expressing confidence in his support base, Pappu Yadav too said, “It is clear people are not going to support RJD here. This appeal will further consolidate my position here,” said the former MP, who has won the seat thrice in the past.
These developments have made it a triangular contest in Purnea. The NDA has fielded Santosh Kumar Kushwaha, the incumbent MP from Nitish Kumar’s JDU, vying for a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha from the constituency.
Bima Bharti, the RJD”s candidate, has been a five-time MLA, and recently switched allegiance from the JDU.
Meanwhile, Pappu Yadav, a familiar face in Purnea politics, made a dramatic independent bid after his aspirations for a Congress ticket were thwarted. Last month, Pappu Yadav merged his Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) with the Congress hoping to get Purnia in return. However, Purnea went to the RJD as part of the seat-sharing arrangement within Bihar”s Opposition alliance, which includes the Congress and Left parties.
His relationship with Lalu Prasad Yadav, however, has been marked by contention. Pappu Yadav was expelled from the RJD in 2014 over anti-party activities, prompting him to establish the Jan Adhikar Party with an agenda opposing the Nitish Kumar-Lalu Prasad Yadav alliance.
Pappu Yadav”s alleged involvement in the 1998 murder of CPI(M) leader Ajit Sarkar, then MLA of Purnea, made things complicated for him. However, his return to the political forefront after nearly two decades has garnered local support, following his proactive involvement in relief efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic and Bihar floods.
