PATNA:
RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s estranged elder son and Janshakti Janata Dal (JJD) president
Tej Pratap Yadav has managed to keep both the ruling
NDA and his own disapproving family on tenterhooks with a series of carefully choreographed political moves centred around his ‘chura-dahi’ feast on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Tej spent the day firmly in the company of NDA leaders before turning to his estranged family by evening. In the morning and afternoon, he visited the residence of BJP leader and deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha to attend the ‘chura-dahi’ feast, where he mingled with senior NDA figures, including CM Nitish Kumar and another deputy CM Samrat Choudhary.
By nightfall, however, he switched tracks, paying a sudden visit to 10, Circular Road — the official residence of his mother Rabri Devi — where he invited his family members, including his younger brother Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, to his Sankranti programme.
Earlier, standing alongside Tej, Sinha said, “With positive energy, every Bihari will come together to advance the glory of Bihar. We Biharis will excel in everything,” he told reporters. Asked directly whether Tej was set to join the NDA, Sinha said the answer would emerge in the “coming days”.
Tej was quick to add to the intrigue. “Pata chalega… Abhi kyon batana hai?” he said, keeping the media guessing. He added that while political ideologies may differ, cultural ethos remain shared, a remark widely seen as an attempt to normalise his visible warmth with NDA leaders.
Even as Tej avoided a clear political commitment, some NDA allies openly extended an invitation. “Tej Pratap ji is welcome to the NDA camp if he wishes to join our coalition,” Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) president and minister Santosh Kumar Suman said.
However, by evening, Tej appeared to recalibrate his moves by inviting his family members to his feast.
In a social media post later in the evening, Tej wrote, “Today, I visited 10, Circular Road, sought blessings from the parents and invited them for the feast… At the same time, I also had the wonderful moment of playing with my dear niece Katyayani in my lap.”
Tej’s relations with the RJD and his family deteriorated sharply after he publicly revealed an intimate relationship with a woman in May last year. Following the controversy, the RJD expelled him for six years and the Lalu family publicly disowned him. On Jan 1 this year, he made a brief and symbolic return to Rabri Devi’s residence to wish her on her birthday — his first such visit since being disowned.
Over the past week, Tej has been on what many describe as a political outreach spree, personally visiting the residences of senior NDA leaders to invite them to the ‘chura-dahi’ feast he is hosting on Wednesday. Those he met include assembly Speaker Prem Kumar, legislative council chairman Awadhesh Narayan Singh and ministers Ashok Choudhary, Madan Sahani and Leshi Singh of the JD(U). BJP leaders Ram Kripal Yadav and Dilip Jaiswal, HAM(S) leader Santosh Kumar Suman and Rashtriya Lok Morcha minister Deepak Prakash were also among those invited.
Whether Tej’s manoeuvres signal a serious political realignment or are merely another chapter in his long record of flip-flops remains unclear. For now, his ‘chura-dahi’ diplomacy has ensured that Bihar’s political class and his own family remain firmly on edge.
Meanwhile, adding to the political theatre, Bihar governor Arif Mohammed Khan also attended the Sankranti feast at Sinha’s residence earlier in the day. “I acknowledge that this is a very important festival for us. This festival symbolises the dynamism of life, where change occurs even without us realising it. On this occasion, I congratulate everyone,” the governor said.