Anirudh Prasad Yadav

Anirudh Prasad Yadav, better known as Sadhu Yadav (born 5 July 1967), is an Indian politician and founder of Garib Janta Dal (Secular). He has served in 14th Lok Sabha as MP of Gopalganj from 2004 to 2009 as Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate. Sadhu was MLA of Gopalganj assembly from 2000 to 2004.

Sadhu Yadav is the real brother of Prabhunath Yadav, Subhash Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi. His sister Rabri is married to Lalu Prasad Yadav, former Railway Minister of India and former Chief Minister of Bihar.

Early life

Sadhu Yadav was born on 5 July 1967 in Salar Kalan village near Mirganj of Gopalganj district, Bihar. His parents are Shiv Prasad Chaudhary and Maharjia Devi.

Sadhu Yadav has 2 brothers Subhash Prasad Yadav and Prabhunath Yadav, and 4 sisters Rabri Devi, Jalebi, Rasgulla and Paan.

Personal life

Sadhu Yadav is married to Indira Devi since 19 June 1986 and the couple have 1 son and 4 daughters.

His daughter Dr Isha Yadav is married to Rahul Yadav, son of Sheela Yadav. Sheela is the sister of Dharmendra Yadav (former MP of Badaun).

Political career

1995-2010

As a member of the RJD, Sadhu Yadav was a MLC in Bihar Legislative Council from 1995 to 1997 and 1998 to 2000 and was also MLA of Gopalganj in Bihar Legislative Assembly from 2000 to 2004. He was elected in 14th Lok Sabha as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Gopalganj Lok Sabha constituency.

He left the RJD after a dispute with his brother-in-law, Lalu Prasad Yadav, related to the allocation of constituencies between RJD and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP). The Gopalganj constituency had become a reserved seat then and Prakash Jha an LJP candidate, who had lost the election in 2004 from Bettiah, was preferred for the Paschim Champaran seat.

Two days after leaving the RJD, in March 2009, Sadhu Yadav joined the Indian National Congress (INC) and unsuccessfully contested the Paschim Champaran Lok Sabha constituency and lost to Sanjay Jaiswal.

2010-Present

In March 2010 he was briefly suspended from the Indian National Congress for allegedly challenging the party's policy strategy. He denied voicing any such challenge and his explanation was accepted. Returning to the Gopalganj constituency, Yadav then fought and lost as a candidate for the INC in the 2010 Bihar legislative assembly election. That election saw confusion regarding the ages of several candidates, including Yadav. The candidates claimed that errors had resulted in the printing process for pre-election affidavits, and in Yadav's case this meant that he was recorded as aged 47 in 2009 when he had been shown as 44 at the time of the 2004 general elections. When asked for clarification by the BBC in 2009, he claimed to be aged 40.

On 25 March 2014, he announced his candidature for 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Saran contesting against his sister and ex-Chief Minister of Bihar Rabri Devi. He stood as an independent candidate. However, he lost the seat to BJP candidate Rajiv Pratap Rudy. He finished a distant third from the Barauli assembly seat in 2015 assembly polls by Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik). He contested the 2019 Indian general election as a BSP candidate from Maharajganj, but lost to Janardan Singh Sigriwal.

Criminal cases

Sadhu Yadav has been accused of multiple crimes

Threatening a Senior IAS Officer

In January 2001, Sadhu Yadav, then an MLA from Gopalganj, was accused of forcibly entering the office of Transport Commissioner N.K. Sinha in Patna. Along with armed associates, he allegedly coerced the officer at gunpoint to sign a transfer order for a Motor Vehicle Inspector. An FIR was lodged shortly thereafter. In May 2022, a special court in Patna convicted Sadhu Yadav and sentenced him to three years of simple imprisonment. He was granted bail and appealed the decision.

Shilpi-Gautam Murder Case (1999)

In July 1999, the bodies of Shilpi Jain and Gautam Singh were found in a car inside a government quarter in Patna. The property was linked to Sadhu Yadav.

Police later sent them for postmortem, but declared it a suicide even before the report arrived. The same car was driven to the police station, destroying all potential evidence. Gautam was cremated the same night. Facing political pressure, Chief Minister Rabri Devi handed over the case to the CBI in September 1999.

CBI’s probe revealed Shilpi was allegedly sexually assaulted by multiple people before death, and semen traces were found on her clothes. When asked for a DNA sample, Sadhu Yadav reportedly refused. The DNA test was dropped, and 4.5 years later, the CBI filed a closure report calling it a suicide by poison. Gautam’s brother planned to move the Supreme Court in 2006 but was kidnapped and later never pursued the case again.

Flood Relief Scam (2007)

Sadhu Yadav was also linked to a major flood relief scam in Bihar, where he allegedly received funds from the main accused, Santosh Jha, and sold a vehicle to Jha’s father. His role in the case led to court action and a fresh arrest warrant.

Controversy

The 2003 film ''Gangaajal'', which is based on true events in Bihar and features a politician character called Sadhu Yadav, caused Yadav's supporters to attack cinemas when it was released. Yadav himself attempted to prevent screening of the film, pleading to the court that it belittled him, but Prakash Jha, the director, claimed that "Sadhu Yadav is just a character in the movie. The movie has nothing to do with the profession of politics nor is it a caricature of the Bihar politician."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yadav, Sadhu
Living people
Bihari politicians
India MPs 2004–2009
Indian National Congress politicians from Bihar
Rashtriya Janata Dal politicians
Members of the Bihar Legislative Council
Crime in Bihar
Lok Sabha members from Bihar
Yadav family (Bihar)
Bahujan Samaj Party politicians from Bihar
1967 births
Bihar MLAs 2000–2005