Lalu Prasad
(born 11 June 1948) is an
Indian politician
The Politics and Government of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution, which was adopted in 1950. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic, described as a “sovereign, socialist, secular democratic republ ...
who served as the
chief minister of Bihar
The chief minister of Bihar serves as the head of the Government of Bihar, overseeing its administration and governance within the constitutional framework of India. While the Governor of Bihar holds the ceremonial role of the constitutional h ...
from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the
union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founder and president of the
Rashtriya Janata Dal
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
(RJD) a prominent political party in Bihar.
He is also a former
member of Parliament (MP) of the
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
and
Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is the upper house of the Parliament of India and functions as the institutional representation of India’s federal units — the states and union territories.https://rajyasabha.nic.in/ It is a key component o ...
.
Lalu Prasad Yadav is often regarded as a political messiah for the
lower castes in
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
, particularly the
Other Backward Classes (OBCs),
Scheduled Castes (SCs), and
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
communities. His political rise in the 1990s marked a significant shift in Bihar's social and political landscape, which had long been dominated by
upper-caste elites.
He entered politics at
Patna University
Patna University is a public state university in Patna, Bihar, India. It was established on 1 October 1917 during the British Raj. It is the first university in Bihar and the seventh oldest university in the Indian subcontinent in the modern e ...
as a student leader and, in 1977, was elected as one of the youngest members of the Lok Sabha for the
Bharatiya Lok Dal
Bharatiya Lok Dal () was a political party in India. The BLD or simply BL was formed at the end of 1974 through the fusion of seven parties opposed to the rule of Indira Gandhi, including the Swatantra Party, the Samyukta Socialist Party, the ...
of the
Janata Alliance.
He became the
chief minister of Bihar
The chief minister of Bihar serves as the head of the Government of Bihar, overseeing its administration and governance within the constitutional framework of India. While the Governor of Bihar holds the ceremonial role of the constitutional h ...
in 1990. His party came to power in the
2015 Bihar Legislative Assembly election
The Legislative Assembly election was held over five phases in Bihar through October–November 2015 before the end of the tenure of the prior Legislative Assembly of Bihar on 29 November 2015.
In April 2015, the Janata Parivar Alliance group ...
in coalition with
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
of
JD(U)
Janata Dal (United) ("People's Party (United)"), abbreviated as JD(U), is a social-democratic and secular Indian political party, rooted mainly in eastern and north-eastern India, whose stated goals are promoting social justice and lifting ...
. The coalition ended when Nitish resigned and the RJD was ousted, becoming the opposition party.
In the
2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly election
The Bihar Legislative Assembly election was held in three phases through October–November to elect members to the Seventeenth Bihar Legislative Assembly. The term of the previous Sixteenth Legislative Assembly of Bihar ended on 29 November 20 ...
, the RJD remained the single largest party in Bihar, and along with JD(U) in power after JD(U) rejoined
MGB in 2022, headed the government until JD(U) returned to
NDA.
Lalu was convicted in the controversial
Fodder Scam, and was serving a term until 17 April 2021, when he was granted bail from the
High Court.
Early life and education
Lalu Prasad, the fifth of six sons
born to Kundan Rai and Marachhiya Devi, was born on 11 June 1948, in Phulwaria village,
situated along the Gopalganj-Kushinagar highway (
NH-27) in
Gopalganj district of
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
. He started his education at a local middle school before moving to
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
with his older brother, Mukund Rai, who enrolled him in an upper primary school in Sheikhpura. After finishing his primary education there, he was enrolled in the Government Middle School located on the Bihar Military Police (BMP) campus, which was next to their quarters at the veterinary college campus.
Siblings
The siblings list is in the order of age.
# Mangru Rai (eldest)
# Gulab Rai
# Mukund Rai
# Mahavir Rai
# Gangotri Devi (lone sister)
# Lalu Prasad (himself only alive)
# Sukhdeo Rai (youngest)
His father died after he completed his matriculation in 1965 from Miller High School in Patna, where he was also a passionate footballer. He changed its name to Devipad Choudhary Shaheed Smarak (Miller) Ucchya Madhyamik Vidyalaya in honour of Devipad Choudhary, who was a freedom fighter and student of the same school. He was also a
NCC cadet, there. According to his Lok Sabha affidavit, he obtained his I.A. (Arts) from B.N. College of
Patna University
Patna University is a public state university in Patna, Bihar, India. It was established on 1 October 1917 during the British Raj. It is the first university in Bihar and the seventh oldest university in the Indian subcontinent in the modern e ...
the following year. However, it is noteworthy that B.N. College does not offer this course, and the program typically spans two years, yet he claims to have completed it in the same year, he got enrolled there. After earning his
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree, he worked as a clerk at
Bihar Veterinary College in
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
, where his eldest brother was employed as a peon.
During his time there, he served as the general secretary of the Patna University Students' Union from 1970 to 1971 and later became its President from 1973 to 1974.
He later earned his L.L.B. degree from
Patna Law College in 1976.
He turned down Patna University's Honorary Doctorate in 2004.
Lalu Prasad asserts that he belongs to the
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
caste;
however, Bihar's deputy chief minister,
Samrat Choudhary
Samrat Choudhary (born 16 November 1968), also known by his alias Rakesh Kumar is an Indian politician, who is currently serving as List of deputy chief ministers of Bihar, Deputy Chief minister of Bihar under Nitish Kumar along with Vijay Sin ...
,
Jitan Ram Manjhi
Jitan Ram Manjhi (born 6 October 1944) is an Indian politician, serving as the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises since 2024. He is currently a Member of Parliament from Gaya constituency and was Bihar's 23rd Chief Minister from ...
,among others, have alleged that his actual caste is
Gaderia.
Personal life and family
Lalu Prasad Yadav married
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
on 1 June 1973, in an
arranged marriage
Arranged marriage is a type of Marriage, marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures, a professional matchmaki ...
, and they went on to have seven daughters and two sons.
The siblings list is in the order of age :-
#
Misa Bharti
Misha Bharti (born 22 May 1976) is an Indian politician from the state of Bihar and the daughter of Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi In June 2016, she was the party's nominee for the Rajya Sabha biennial elections and was elected unopposed along w ...
- Eldest Child (daughter)
# Rohini Acharya - married to Samaresh Singh
# Chanda Singh - married to Vikram Singh in 2006, a pilot in Indian Airlines
# Ragini Yadav - married to Rahul Yadav,
Samajwadi Party
The Samajwadi Party ( SP; ) is a Socialism, socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. It is the third-largest political party in ...
leader from Sarfabad in
Noida
Noida (), short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (ISO: ), is a city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. As per provisional reports of Census of India, the population of Noida in 2011 was ...
# Hema Yadav - married to Vineet Yadav
# Anushka Rao (Dhannu) - married to Chiranjeev Rao (son of
Ajay Singh Yadav)
#
Tej Pratap Yadav
Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is an Indian politician. He was cabinet minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of Bihar. He is the elder son of former Chief Ministers of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri D ...
- Elder Son (former Environment, Forest and Climate Change minister in Government of Bihar.)
# RajLaxmi Singh Yadav - married to
Tej Pratap Singh Yadav
#
Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
- younger son (former
Deputy CM of Bihar).
Political career
1970–1990: Student leader and youngest MP

In 1970, Lalu entered student politics as the general secretary of the Patna University Students' Union (PUSU), becoming its president in 1973,
eventually joining
Jai Prakash Narayan's Bihar Movement in 1974
where he became sufficiently close to the
Janata Party
The Janata Party (JP, ) is an unrecognised political party in India. Navneet Chaturvedi is the current president of the party since November 2021, replacing Jaiprakash Bandhu.
The JP was established as an amalgam of Indian political partie ...
(JP) leaders to become the winning candidate in the
1977 Lok Sabha election from
Chapra at the age of 29.
In 1979, the Janata Party government fell due to in-fighting. The parliament was dissolved with new polls held in 1980. Lalu quit the Janata party to join the splinter group, Janta Party-S, led by
Raj Narain
Raj Narain (23 November 1917 – 31 December 1986) was an Indian freedom fighter and politician. He won in a famous electoral malpractice case against the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, which led to her disqualification and, eventually, im ...
, only to lose
re-election
The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election.
There may or may not be a ...
in 1980. He managed to win the
Bihar Legislative Assembly
The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the bicameral Bihar Legislature of the state of Bihar in India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is ...
election later in 1980, and again in 1985 to become the leader of opposition in Bihar assembly in 1989. Later in 1989, he was also elected to
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
under the
V. P. Singh government. By 1990, he positioned himself as the leader of
Yadavs (14.26%
as of 2023) and the lower castes.
Muslims, who had traditionally served as
Congress (I)
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement ...
vote bank, shifted their support to Laluafter the
1989 Bhagalpur violence.
He became popular among the young voters of Bihar.
1990–1997: Lalu Prasad as Chief Minister of Bihar
In 1990, the Janata Dal came to power in Bihar. PM
V. P. Singh wanted former chief minister
Ram Sundar Das to lead the government,
while
Chandra Shekhar
Chandra Shekhar (17 April 1927 – 8 July 2007), also known as Jananayak, was an Indian politician and the prime minister of India, between 10 November 1990 and 21 June 1991. He headed a minority government of a breakaway faction of the Janata ...
backed
Raghunath Jha
Raghunath Jha (9 August 1939 – 15 January 2018) was an Indian politician who was Union minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprise and member of the 14th Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Bettiah constituency of Bihar ...
. To break the deadlock, deputy PM
Devi Lal
Devi Lal (25 September 1914 – 6 April 2001) was an Indian statesman and politician who briefly served as the deputy prime minister of India from 1990 to 1991 and previously from 1989 to 1990. Lal emerged as a prominent advocate for rural and ...
nominated Lalu as the candidate for Chief Minister. He was victorious in an internal poll of Janata Dal MLAs and became the chief minister. On 23 September 1990, Lalu arrested
L. K. Advani
Lal Krishna Advani (born 8 November 1927) is an Indian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. He is one of the co-founders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sa ...
at
Samastipur
Samastipur is a City and Municipal Corporation in Bihar, India. It is the headquarter of Samastipur district and comes under Darbhanga division. The Burhi Gandak River flows through the city. It is one of the five railway divisions of ECR, H ...
during the latter's
Ram Rath Yatra
The ''Ram Rath Yatra'' was a political and religious rally that lasted from September to October 1990. It was organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its Hindu nationalist affiliates, and led by the then-president of the BJP, L. K ...
to
Ayodhya
Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...
. The slogan "''Bhurabal saaf karo''" (remove upper caste) was reportedly used as a pejorative during Lalu Prasad's first tenure as Chief Minister of Bihar in the early 1990s to call for the wipeout of upper castes. The term ''bhurabal'' translates to "
blond hair
Blond () or blonde (), also referred to as fair hair, is a human hair color characterized by low levels of eumelanin, the dark pigment. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can be ...
," referencing the
fair-skinned high castes. It also serves as an acronym for
Bhumihar,
Rajput,
Brahmin, and
Lala (
Kayastha
Kayastha (or Kayasth) denotes a cluster of disparate Indian communities broadly categorised by the regions of the Indian subcontinent in which they were traditionally locatedthe Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas of North India, the Chandraseniya Ka ...
), referring to the four prominent upper castes in the state.
The
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
lauded his party for its work in the 1990s on the economic front. In 1993, Lalu adopted a pro-English policy and pushed for the re-introduction of
English as a language in school curriculum, contrary to the ''angrezi hatao'' (banish English) policy of then
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...
CM Mulayam Singh Yadav
Mulayam Singh Yadav (22 November 1939 – 10 October 2022) was an Indian politician, a socialism, socialist figure and founder of the Samajwadi Party. Over the course of his political career spanning more than six decades, he served for three t ...
. The policy of opposition to English was considered an anti-elite policy since both the leaders represented the same social constituents – the backward castes, dalits and minority communities. Lalu continued to be Bihar CM.
1997–2000: Formation of RJD and national politics

In 1997, due to allegations related to the Fodder Scam, a leadership revolt surfaced in Janata Dal. Consequently, Lalu broke away from Janata Dal and formed a new political party,
Rashtriya Janata Dal
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
(RJD).
In
1998 general for the
12th Lok Sabha
The 12th Lok Sabha (23 March 1998 – 26 April 1999), was constituted after the 1998 Indian general election held during February–March 1998. This was the second consecutive Lok Sabha, like the 11th Lok Sabha elections that did not provide the ...
, Lalu won from
Madhepura
Madhepura is a municipality in Madhepura district in the Indian state of Bihar. It stands at the centre of Kosi ravine, It was called ''Madhyapura-'' a place centrally situated which was subsequently transformed as Madhipura into present Madhe ...
, but lost in
1999 general election to
Sharad Yadav
Sharad Yadav (1 July 1947 – 12 January 2023) was an Indian politician from the Loktantrik Janata Dal(LJD) party. He was elected to the Lok Sabha seven times and to the Rajya Sabha four times from JD(U). He was the first national president of ...
.
In
2000 Bihar Legislative Assembly election
Legislative Assembly elections were held in February 2000, to elect the 324 members of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. The Rashtriya Janata Dal won the most seats, but a short-lived government was formed by an alliance that included the Bharatiy ...
he won and remained in opposition.
2000–2005: Rabri Devi as Chief Minister of Bihar
In 2002, Lalu was elected to the
Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is the upper house of the Parliament of India and functions as the institutional representation of India’s federal units — the states and union territories.https://rajyasabha.nic.in/ It is a key component o ...
, where he stayed until 2004. In 2000, the RJD again formed the government with
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
as the CM. Except for the brief
presidential rule and 7 days term of
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
, the RJD remained in power in
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
until 2005.
2004–2009: Union Minister of Railways
In May 2004, Lalu contested the
general election
A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...
from
Chhapra
Chhapra (ISO 15919, ISO: ''Chaparā'') is a city and headquarters of the Saran District in the Indian state of Bihar. It is situated near the junction of the Ghaghara River and the Ganges River.
Chhapra grew in importance as a river-based mar ...
and
Madhepura
Madhepura is a municipality in Madhepura district in the Indian state of Bihar. It stands at the centre of Kosi ravine, It was called ''Madhyapura-'' a place centrally situated which was subsequently transformed as Madhipura into present Madhe ...
against
Rajiv Pratap Rudy
Rajiv Pratap Rudy (born 30 March 1962) is an Indian politician from Bihar. He is a four-time Member of Parliament representing Bharatiya Janata Party. In 2023, he won from Saran (Lok Sabha constituency) in Bihar. Earlier, he won three times in ...
and
Sharad Yadav
Sharad Yadav (1 July 1947 – 12 January 2023) was an Indian politician from the Loktantrik Janata Dal(LJD) party. He was elected to the Lok Sabha seven times and to the Rajya Sabha four times from JD(U). He was the first national president of ...
respectively and won both seats with a good margin. In total, RJD won 21 seats and it allied with
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
becoming second-largest member of
UPA I after Congress. Lalu became the
Minister of Railways
A Ministry of Railways is a Cabinet department that exists or has existed in many Commonwealth states as well as others. It generally occurs in countries where railroad transportation is a particularly important part of the national infrastructur ...
in the 2004 UPA Government. Later, he gave up the Madhepura seat won by
Pappu Yadav
Rajesh Ranjan (born 24 December 1967) popularly known as Pappu Yadav, is an Indian politician from Bihar, and a member of Parliament (MP) representing Purnia constituency in Bihar.
Emerging from a background linked to crime, Yadav transitio ...
.
As railway minister, Lalu left passenger fares untouched and focused on other sources of revenue for the railways. He penalised the use of thermocol plastic cups from being used to serve tea at railway stations and replaced those with
Kulhars(pottery cups), in order to generate more employment in rural areas which failed miserably due to socio-economic reasons. Later, he also said that he had plans to introduce
buttermilk
Buttermilk is a fermented dairy drink. Traditionally, it was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cultured cream. As most modern butter in Western countries is not made with cultured cream but uncultured sweet cream, most mode ...
and
khādī linen.
He also introduced cushion seats in all unreserved compartments.
In June 2004, he announced that he would get on the railway himself to inspect its problems and went on to board the train from Patna Railway station at midnight. During this tenure he is accused to have committed 2005 Indian Railway tender scam.
When he took over, the Indian Railways was a loss-making organisation. In the years under his leadership, He claimed a cumulative total profit of . Business schools around the world became interested in Lalu's leadership in managing the turnaround. The contrived turnaround was introduced as a case study by the
Indian Institute of Management.
Lalu also received invitations from eight
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...
schools for lectures, and addressed over a hundred students from
Harvard
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
,
Wharton and others in
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
.
In 2006, the
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...
and
HEC Management School, France, showed interest in turning Lalu's contrived experiment with the Indian Railway into case studies for aspiring business graduates.
In 2009, Lalu's successor
Mamata Banerjee
Mamata Banerjee (; born 5 January 1955) is an Indian politician who is serving as the eighth and current List of chief ministers of West Bengal, chief minister of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal since 2 ...
and the opposition parties alleged that the so-called turnaround of the Railways during his tenure was merely a result of presenting
financial statement
Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity.
Relevant financial information is presented in a structured manner and in a form which is easy to un ...
s differently. A 2011 report by the
CAG endorsed this view. CAG found that the "surplus" shown on the financial statements during Lalu's tenure covered "cash and investible surplus", which were not included in the "net surplus" figures released by the Railways in the earlier years. The "cash surplus" included the money available for paying dividend, contribution to the Depreciation Reserve Fund used for renewal or replacement of existing assets, and other funds for investment. The "investible surplus" included the money allocated for
capital expenditure
Capital expenditure or capital expense (abbreviated capex, CAPEX, or CapEx) is the money an organization or corporate entity spends to buy, maintain, or improve its fixed assets, such as buildings, vehicles, equipment, or land. It is considered ...
. The report concluded that the performance of the Railways actually declined marginally during the last few years of Lalu's tenure.
2005–2015: Out of power in Bihar and Center
Bihar Assembly elections were held twice in the year 2005. There was a fractured verdict in the
February 2005 Assembly election. Since no government could be formed in Bihar, fresh elections were held in October–November the same year. In
October 2005 state elections RJD
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Othe ...
won 54 seats, less than
JD(U)
Janata Dal (United) ("People's Party (United)"), abbreviated as JD(U), is a social-democratic and secular Indian political party, rooted mainly in eastern and north-eastern India, whose stated goals are promoting social justice and lifting ...
and
BJP coalition led by
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
which came to power. In the
2010 elections
This is a list of elections that were held in 2010.
* 2010 United Nations Security Council election
* 2010 national electoral calendar
* 2010 local electoral calendar Africa
* 2010 Burkinabé presidential election
* 2010 Burundian Senate election
* ...
, the RJD tally was reduced to just 22 seats whereas the ruling alliance claimed a record 206 out of the 243 Assembly seats.
In the
2009 general election RJD won 4 seats and provided outside support to
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (26 September 1932 – 26 December 2024) was an Indian economist, bureaucrat, academician, and statesman, who served as the prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He was the fourth longest-serving prime minister after Jaw ...
government. In May 2012, Lalu Prasad envisaged
Hamid Ansari
Hamid refers to two different but related Arabic given names, both of which come from the Arabic triconsonantal root of Ḥ-M-D ():
# (Arabic: ''ḥāmed'') also spelled Haamed, Hamid or Hamed, and in Turkish Hamit; it means "lauder" or "one ...
, previous
Vice President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
, as a presidential candidate. In May 2013, Lalu tried to rejuvenate the party and fuel the party workers in his Parivartan Rally. After the conviction in
Fodder Scam on 3 October 2013, Lalu was disqualified from the membership of
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
. In
2014 general election, Lalu Prasad's RJD again won 4 seats.
2015–current: Grand Alliance
In the
2015 Bihar Assembly elections, Lalu Prasad's RJD became the largest party with a total of 81 seats. He along with his partner
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
of the
JD(U)
Janata Dal (United) ("People's Party (United)"), abbreviated as JD(U), is a social-democratic and secular Indian political party, rooted mainly in eastern and north-eastern India, whose stated goals are promoting social justice and lifting ...
gained absolute majority to form a government in Bihar. This was cited as a major comeback for the RJD and for Lalu on the political stage of Bihar after a gap of 10 years. But that suffocating alliance did not last long as Nitish Kumar dumped and ousted Lalu's party from the power and alliance in July 2017 after the
Enforcement Directorate
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is a law enforcement and economic intelligence agency of the Government of India. Established on 1 May 1956, it is responsible for enforcing economic laws and combating financial crimes. The ED operates under th ...
and
Central Bureau of Investigation
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the domestic crime investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and gover ...
lodged several criminal cases against Lalu's son and Deputy Chief Minister,
Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
.
[Why Nitish Kumar junked Lalu Prasad Yadav to join hands with BJP.]
, India Today
''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media, Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' laun ...
, 27 Jul 2017.[Survivor Nitish Kumar chooses the winner, dumps Lalu for Modi.]
, Economic Times, 26 Jul 2017.
Positions held
Lalu has been elected 4 times as
MLA and 5 times as
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
MP.
Note:
* 2004: Re-elected to the
14th Lok Sabha
The 14th Lok Sabha (2 June 2004 – 18 May 2009) was convened after the 2004 Indian general election held in four phases during 20 April – 10 May 2004, which led to the formation of first Manmohan Singh ministry (2004–2009). Indian National ...
(4th term) from
Chapra and
Madhepura
Madhepura is a municipality in Madhepura district in the Indian state of Bihar. It stands at the centre of Kosi ravine, It was called ''Madhyapura-'' a place centrally situated which was subsequently transformed as Madhipura into present Madhe ...
; retained Chapra. Appointed Cabinet Minister in the
Ministry of Railways in
UPA govt. Lalu, wife
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
, son
Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
and daughter
Misha Bharti booked for railway tender bribery scam, disproportionate illegal property and income tax evasion cases in 2017.
* 2009: Re-elected to the
15th Lok Sabha
Members of the 15th Lok Sabha were elected during the 2009 general election in India. It was dissolved on 18 May 2014 by President Pranab Mukherjee.Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance won 44 more seats than the previous 14t ...
(5th term). Contested two seats. Lost from
Pataliputra
Pataliputra (IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, Bihar, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE, as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliput ...
but won from
Saran, and disqualified in 2013 subsequent to his conviction in the first
fodder scam case. And barred from contesting elections for 6 years.
Populist policies and consolidation of lower castes
According to Seyed Hossein Zarhani, although Lalu Prasad became a hate figure among
Forward Caste
Forward caste (or General caste) is a term used in India to denote castes which are not listed in SC, ST or OBC reservation lists. They are on average considered ahead of other castes economically and educationally. They account for about 30.8% ...
s, he drew huge support from backward castes and
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
s. He was criticised for neglecting development, but a study conducted during his reign, among downtrodden
Musahar
Musahar or Mushahar () are a Dalit community found in the eastern Gangetic plain and the Terai. They are also known as Rishidev, Sada, Manjhi, ''Banbasi''. The other names of the Musahar are Bhuiyan and Rajawar.
Origins and history
Etymolo ...
s revealed that despite the construction of houses for them not being concluded at required pace, they are obliged to choose him as their leader as he returned them their ''ijjat'' (honour)
and for the first time they are allowed to vote as per their own wishes. A number of populist policies which directly impacted his "
Backward Caste" supporters were launched during his tenure. Some of these being establishment of ''Charvaha schools'', where children of poor could get skilled; abolishment of cess on
toddy and making of the negligence of rules related to reservation for "Backward Castes" as cognizable offence. Lalu Prasad mobilised 'Backwards' through his identity politics. According to his conception, Forward Castes were elite in the outlook and thus he portrayed himself as, "''Messiah of Backwards''" by ensuring that his way of living remain identical to his supporters who were mostly poor. He even continued to reside in his quarter of one room after getting elected as
Chief Minister
A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...
, though later he moved to official residence of the
CM for administrative convenience.
Another significant event during his regime was the recruitment of 'Backward Castes' and communities to government services in large numbers. The government's white paper claimed to have significant number of vacancies in health sector and similar manpower crunch existed across various sectors. The rules of recruitment were changed drastically in order to benefit "Backward Castes", who supported him. The frequent transfer of existing officers, who were at the higher echelon of bureaucracy was also an important feature of Lalu Prasad and
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
's regime. These developments led to collapse of administration and entire system. Lalu however continued to rule Bihar due to massive support from "Backward Castes" as well as his emphasis on "honour" which he considered more important than the development. Thus according to Zarhani, for the lower caste he was a charismatic leader who was capable to become the voice of those who were silent for long.
Another form of mobilisation of his
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
supporters by Lalu Prasad was popularising all those folk heroes of lower castes, who were said to have vanquished the upper caste adversaries. One such example is of a popular Dalit saint who was revered as he not only ran away with an upper caste girl but also suppressed all her kins. Praising him could enrage
Bhumihar
Bhumihar, also locally called Bhuinhar and Babhan, a Hindu Indian caste system, caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila (region), Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya ...
caste in some parts of Bihar. There is a grand celebration every year at a particular place near
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
and Lalu Prasad participates in this fair with pomp and show. His energetic participation in this show makes it a rallying point for Dalits, who saw it as their victory and the harassment of
upper castes.
According to Kalyani Shankar, Lalu created a feeling amongst the oppressed that they are real rulers of state under him. He continuously lambasted the oppressors on the behalf of the oppressed and led to their emergence as the pivot of political power. The upper caste, who composed just 13.2% of the population, were controlling most of the land while the 'Backwards', who were 51%, own very little land. The advent of Lalu led to a drastic change in the economic profile of the state, followed by the diversification of the occupation of the 'Backwards' and increase in land owned by them.
Lalu also instilled a sense of confidence among Muslims by stopping
Lal Krishna Advani
Lal Krishna Advani (born 8 November 1927) is an Indian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. He is one of the co-founders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak San ...
's controversial "
Rath yatra
Ratha Yatra (), or chariot festival, is any public procession in a chariot. They are held annually during festivals in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. The term also refers to the popular annual Ratha Yatra of Puri that involves a public processi ...
". Muslims of Bihar were feeling a sense of insecurity after the ghastly
1989 Bhagalpur riots. The
Satyendra Narayan Singh government failed to control law and order situation thus death toll reached over 1000. The people affected were mostly poor weavers and others belonging to low strata of society and hence they were looking for a leader who could control the deteriorating situation of state under Congress. According to Kalyani, during this period upper castes were totally marginalised and '
Backwards' came to control the power firmly.
Emergence as the leader of plebeians
During his tenure, Lalu never tried to emulate the erstwhile elite chief ministers. He took part in the public festivals and popularised his famous ''Kurta far
Holi
Holi () is a major Hindu festival celebrated as the Festival of Colours, Love and Spring.The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...".Yudit Greenberg, Encyclopedia of Love in World ...
'' (cloth tearing Holi). On this occasion his invitees and the media persons would reach his house shouting: ''Kaha Chhupal hai Lalu Sala'' (Where is the bloody Lalu hiding?). Lalu also responded in a similar abusive tone. The vulgar songs were also played on the occasion. Besides this, he never hesitated in calling himself the son of a poor ''Goala'' (herder). During his public celebration of Holi festival, he used to play the ''
Dhol
Dhol () can refer to any one of a number of similar types of double-headed drum widely used, with regional variations, throughout the Indian subcontinent. Its range of distribution in Indian subcontinent primarily includes northern areas such ...
'' himself and dance to the beat of ''Jogira'' song. Lalu's rallies were called railla, a symbol of masculinity. Those participating in these rallies were supposed to carry a lathi, a robust stick, which was both the symbol of "masculinity" as well as the chief weapon of a "herder", who used it to manage his cows. The drinking of ''
Bhang
Bhang (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Bhāṅg'') is an Cannabis edible, edible preparation made from the leaves of the Cannabis (drug), cannabis plant originating from the Indian subcontinent. ''Cannabis sativa'' ...
'', a natural liquor and sitting the whole night to watch the ''
Launda dance'' (Dance of a
Eunuch
A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2 ...
acting as a woman) made him popular among rural Biharis but all of these obscene activities of a Chief Minister irritated the middle class sensibilities.
According to Ashwini Kumar:
Confrontation with bureaucracy and other policies
With the coming in power of Lalu Prasad, the representation of
OBC saw a spurt in the legislative assembly of state. The
upper-caste were at great disadvantage due to the new caste composition of the state legislature. In his second tenure, when the elections of 1995 took place in the state, the OBC legislators became 49.69 per cent in the assembly and the upper caste legislators fell to 17.28 per cent, a massive decline since 1960s (In
1995 Bihar Legislative Assembly election
The 11th Bihar Legislative Assembly elections were held in March 1995, to elect the 324 members of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Janata Dal got a decisive victory in the state; political manoeuvre ensured Lalu Prasad Yadav's victory in the chie ...
s, only 61 upper caste legislators were elected, while the number of Backward Caste legislators was 165
). The domination of the Backwards in the
legislature
A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial power ...
brought it into conflict with the
bureaucracy
Bureaucracy ( ) is a system of organization where laws or regulatory authority are implemented by civil servants or non-elected officials (most of the time). Historically, a bureaucracy was a government administration managed by departments ...
, which was still dominated by the upper-castes. There witnessed a hike in incidents of corruption, because the upper-caste bureaucrats utilised the 'lack of knowledge' in administration of the new legislators (from the OBC background) to stealthily sabotage and subvert constructive policies of the Lalu's government.
Since, the administrative class belonged to landed class of upper caste; the
Thakur,
Bhumihar
Bhumihar, also locally called Bhuinhar and Babhan, a Hindu Indian caste system, caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila (region), Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya ...
,
Kayastha
Kayastha (or Kayasth) denotes a cluster of disparate Indian communities broadly categorised by the regions of the Indian subcontinent in which they were traditionally locatedthe Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas of North India, the Chandraseniya Ka ...
and
Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
, they aimed at this obstruction, in order to secure not only their personal interest, but also the interest of the social class, they belonged to. The advent of Lalu Prasad to power was considered as end of their dominance. Hence, amidst confrontation between the bureaucracy and the legislature, the upper-caste dominated bureaucracy became determined to obstruct the caste based social justice promoted by the
Janata Dal
Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
government under Lalu. They often resorted to frequent defiance of orders to maintain the status-quo. Hence, the government undermined the bureaucracy, as the government, which is said to have voted to power on the platform of OBC empowerment, was also determined to bring the
social justice
Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...
, even at the cost of administrative disfunction.
At the time, the caste composition of judiciary also mirrored the bureaucracy and latter too come into conflict with the government. In the meantime, in the year 1996, a major scandal was witnessed in the state, which involved embezzlement of billions of
rupee
Rupee (, ) is the common name for the currency, currencies of
Indian rupee, India, Mauritian rupee, Mauritius, Nepalese rupee, Nepal, Pakistani rupee, Pakistan, Seychellois rupee, Seychelles, and Sri Lankan rupee, Sri Lanka, and of former cu ...
s from the Animal Husbandry Department of state. Initially, the case was to be investigated by Bihar police, which means, government to be in the control of the investigation, but later the judiciary came into play, and the reservation of the case by
Supreme Court
In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
for
Central Bureau of Investigation
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the domestic crime investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and gover ...
, saw Patna High Court assuming charge over the case. The
Fodder Scam, as it was called was a new series of conflict between the government on one hand and the CBI and Judiciary at the other hand.
Between 1990 and 2005, the government under Lalu Prasad's Janata Dal undertook several measures to strengthen the control of OBCs,
Scheduled Caste and
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
s over bureaucracy. Latter were given the powerful position like those of
District Magistrate
The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...
. Transfers of the upper echelon of bureaucracy was also frequently resorted to. In the year 1993, the post of Director General of Police as well as Chief Secretary were both given to officers belonging to lower castes and the incumbent officers, who were both Brahmins were removed. Since the strategy of transfer of unwanted bureaucrats has a limit, Lalu's government was adamant in use of
quota Quota may refer to: Economics
* Import quota, a restriction on the quantity of goods that can be imported into a country
* Market Sharing Quota, an economic system used in Canadian agriculture
* Milk quota, a quota on milk production in Europe
* ...
to fill these posts with the officials from the subaltern background. If unable to appoint the lower castes, the government chose to keep many posts vacant, to prevent the upper castes from occupying them.
In order to weaken the upper-caste bureaucracy, the scope for intervention in its functioning by the party officials, belonging to Janata Dal was kept open.Hence, increased interference by party activists in the functioning of bureaucracy and police was witnessed. Meanwhile, the resurgence of the OBCs and
SCs also resulted in extension of patronage to many of the ''Bahubalis'' ( a term representing someone with money and muscle power with criminal background) from these social groups. Lalu Prasad is said to have patronised;
Pappu Yadav
Rajesh Ranjan (born 24 December 1967) popularly known as Pappu Yadav, is an Indian politician from Bihar, and a member of Parliament (MP) representing Purnia constituency in Bihar.
Emerging from a background linked to crime, Yadav transitio ...
, operating out of
Purnea
Purnia (; also romanized and officially known as Purnea) is the fourth largest city of Bihar and is emerging as the largest economic hub in North Bihar. It serves as the administrative headquarters of both Purnia district and Purnia divisio ...
and
Madhepura
Madhepura is a municipality in Madhepura district in the Indian state of Bihar. It stands at the centre of Kosi ravine, It was called ''Madhyapura-'' a place centrally situated which was subsequently transformed as Madhipura into present Madhe ...
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
s; Vinod Yadav, operating out of Bhagalpur district;
Surendra Yadav, operating out of Gaya district;
Mohammad Shahabuddin Mohammad Shahabuddin is a Muslim male given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words ''Muhammad (name), Mohammad'' () and ''Shihab al-Din (disambiguation), Shihab al-Din'' ().
It may refer to:
* Shahadudheen Sabith ( ...
, operating out of Siwan district; Makhi Paswan, operating out of
Khagaria district; and Mohammed Suleiman, operating out of
Kishanganj
Kishanganj is a city and district headquarters of Kishanganj district in Purnia division of Bihar state in India.
History
Kishanganj, which was previously part of Purnia district, is part of the Mithila region.
Mithila first gained prominen ...
district.
Lalu's aide
Brij Bihari Prasad, who was known for his muscle power ended the crime empire of Devendra Dubey, that was spread from
East Champaran
East Champaran or Purvi Champaran is an administrative district in the Tirhut division of the state of Bihar in India. The district headquarter is located at Motihari. Prior to 1971, there was a single Champaran District. On 1 December 1971, ...
to
Muzaffarpur district
The Muzaffarpur district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar States and territories of India, state, India. Muzaffarpur district is part of and also the headquarters of Tirhut division. Muzaffarpur district is the financial and un-off ...
.
Naxal leaders like
Ravindra Singh Kushwaha, who were waging a war against the landlords through various naxal organisations active in the state, were invited to
Janata Dal
Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
and allotted tickets to contest in assembly election. Subsequently, all the criminal cases against him were dropped, during the premiership of Lalu.
A popular opinion outside Bihar with respect to weakening of bureaucracy and "breakdown of governance" was the presence of rampant corruption and leadership's ineptitude in Lalu's regime. But, according to Jeffrey Witsoe, the
RJD
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Othe ...
deliberately weakened the state institutions controlled by upper-castes in order to empower the lower castes. The OBCs were in control of government but the media and the bureaucracy along with the judiciary was still in control of upper-castes, it was this upper-caste dominance of the other state institutions that the OBC leadership was vying to end by trying to displace the upper-castes effectively from power.
In the meantime, accusations were laid against Lalu's government for fomenting
caste
A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...
based antagonism between various social groups. Various commentators have stressed that under Lalu's Janata Dal rule, the agricultural labourers and
untouchables became vocal for respect from the dominant class and the fair
wage
A wage is payment made by an employer to an employee for work (human activity), work done in a specific period of time. Some examples of wage payments include wiktionary:compensatory, compensatory payments such as ''minimum wage'', ''prevailin ...
s. Retaliation on the part of lower castes were also seen, when the dominant caste
militia
A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...
s tried to quell their revolt on these grounds. In one such case, in December 1991, a dominant caste militia called "Savarna Liberation Front"
gangraped and murdered ten
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
women, in retaliation, the left wing militants all belonging either Dalit or Backward Castes killed thirty five people from the dominant caste.
William Dalrymple
William Benedict Hamilton-Dalrymple (born 20 March 1965) is a Delhi-based Scottish people, Scottish historian and art historian, as well as a curator, broadcaster and critic. He spends nine months of each year on his goat farm in India.
He i ...
has chronicled the account of a dominant caste landowner who survived the massacre. The interlocutor of Dalrymple, who declared the incident to be a handiwork of Bihar government under Lalu Prasad said:
Another account from the ''Sargana
Gram Panchayat'' area testifies the change in established socio-political order brought by the government under Lalu Prasad. A large
Rajput
Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...
farmer from the Panchayat constituency, who had been a predecessor of the incumbent
Mukhi
Mukhi (''mukhia'') is the title used for a head of community or village elitesIndia's Villages. Development Department, West Bengal, 1955 and their local government in Western India and Sindh.Peasant Pasts: History and Memory in Western India. Vin ...
ya of the village said:
As per one opinion, Lalu extended tacit support to the
Maoist Communist Centre of India (MCC), and in the period of caste wars, he, as a Chief Minister frequently visited the places, where the victims were from Backward Castes. It is opined that many people from these castes voted him, only because he represented their aspiration of speaking back and becoming virile. The poor of the state couldn't gain much in terms of jobs and services of state, but they were no longer left to be treated with disdain. Nandini Gooptu has mentioned some studies from the rural Bihar, belonging to the time period following the coming into power of Lalu Prasad, where the
Schedule Castes like
Musahar
Musahar or Mushahar () are a Dalit community found in the eastern Gangetic plain and the Terai. They are also known as Rishidev, Sada, Manjhi, ''Banbasi''. The other names of the Musahar are Bhuiyan and Rajawar.
Origins and history
Etymolo ...
s became vocal for their rights including wages, for the work they do under 'employment guarantee schemes' of government. In one such study, a Musahar woman was recorded abusing the government officials belonging to Rajput caste for cheating
hem
A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the ga ...
on wages due to them. Similarly, in another case, a
Schedule Tribe Santhal
Santhal or Santal may refer to :
*Santhal people (part of the Tea Tribes), in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Assam in India, also minorities in neighboring Bangladesh and Nepal
** their Santhal rebellion in present-day Jharkhand, India
** ...
was recorded taunting son of a Kayastha landlord. Many changes were observed at the lowest level of governance too; in one such case, a Rajput landlord family was replaced by a
Kevat caste man for the post of
Mukhi
Mukhi (''mukhia'') is the title used for a head of community or village elitesIndia's Villages. Development Department, West Bengal, 1955 and their local government in Western India and Sindh.Peasant Pasts: History and Memory in Western India. Vin ...
ya in a village. These changes in the rural Bihar was found to be remarkable, considering the brutally enforced inequalities persisting therein for years.
In the early years of his rise in political circle, Lalu Prasad was also successful in creating defection in the left-wing political parties of the state, which had long history of association with
Naxalism. In the areas around
Nalanda
Nalanda (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) was a renowned Buddhism, Buddhist ''mahavihara'' (great monastery) in medieval Magadha (Mahajanapada), Magadha (modern-day Bihar), eastern India. Widely considered to be am ...
and
Aurangabad
Aurangabad (), officially renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2023, is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a ...
, the weakening of the
CPI-ML liberation is attributed to the significant rise of
Rashtriya Janata Dal
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
(RJD) led by Lalu Prasad. The RJD successfully attracted the
Koeri
The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri), also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional oc ...
and
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
leadership of the party, thus strengthening itself at the cost of
liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
. The leaders of CPI (ML) liberation, who defected to RJD included,
Shri Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha, Umesh Singh, K.D Yadav and
Suryadev Singh.
Lalu's rule also led to breaking away of patron-client relationship in elections between the upper castes and the Dalits. The labourers of the upper caste landlords were primarily people from Dalit background, who were forced to vote in the elections as per the wishes of their masters, the upper castes. But, in this period, the agricultural labourers were given free hand in exercising their power to select their representatives. This transformation of the existing system brought political freedom for a large number of Dalits.
Earlier, the primary schools, which served as polling station during the elections used to be present in the upper caste villages. Hence, the Dalits needed to visit the upper caste villages to vote during elections. This was a problematic arrangement as the upper caste used to coerce them to vote their preferred candidate. However, journalist Amberish K Diwanji, who visited many villages in Bihar during 2005 Assembly elections, found that these schools were shifted to lower caste villages, by Lalu Prasad when he assumed the charge of state in earlier elections. This prevented the upper castes from coercing the Dalits during elections, and latter can exercise their franchise freely. Diwanji also noted that there existed robust social bonding between
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
s and
Musahar
Musahar or Mushahar () are a Dalit community found in the eastern Gangetic plain and the Terai. They are also known as Rishidev, Sada, Manjhi, ''Banbasi''. The other names of the Musahar are Bhuiyan and Rajawar.
Origins and history
Etymolo ...
s in some regions of
Madhepura district
Madhepura district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state, India, and Madhepura town is the administrative headquarters of this district. Madhepura district is a part of Kosi division.
History
Madhepura district is part of the Kos ...
. As per his report, in this region, the Yadavs had taken the place of upper caste in deciding, to whom the Musahars will vote. But, unlike upper castes, who didn't mingle with the Musahars, the Yadavs, specially the poor ones, considered them as equal. Due to similar economic condition, the poor Yadavs in the region, mingled with the Musahars, their children play with each other and they behaved as a single social unit. Reportedly, this bonding often transforms into votes and Musahars prefers Lalu Prasad than any other political leader.
In some of the regions of the rural area of South Bihar, after the establishment of rule of Janata Dal under Lalu Prasad, the realignment in the policy of militant organisations like
Maoist Communist Centre was observed. The MCC was dominated by the members of
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
caste in the leadership position and the Schedule Castes served as the foot soldiers. Before advent of Lalu Prasad on the scene in 1980s, MCC was waging a "
class war
Class War is an anarchist group and newspaper established by Ian Bone and others in 1983 in the United Kingdom. An incarnation of Class War was briefly registered as a political party for the purposes of fighting the 2015 United Kingdom gener ...
", however, after Lalu Prasad assumed the premiership of the state the Yadav caste and Schedule Castes of the MCC shifted their loyalty to him. Earlier, the MCC had targeted
Rajput
Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...
s in the
Dalelchak-Bhagaura massacre, but according to author Shashi Bhushan Singh, Lalu wanted a political alliance with the Rajputs and he directed the MCC members, specially his castemen to stop targeting the Rajputs. The Rajputs also accepted the dominance of Naxalite groups over the time in some regions of south Bihar and the Bhumihars remained the major challenger to both the Naxalites as well as the rule of Lalu Prasad.
After perpetrating a number of massacre of
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
s,
Ranvir Sena, the caste based
militia
A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...
of Bhumihar caste perpetrated Miyanpur massacre in 2000, in
Aurangabad, Bihar
Aurangabad is a city in Aurangabad District, Bihar, India. It is the district's centre of governance and has a population of 102,244 as of 2011. The people of this region speak Magahi and Hindi.
History
In ancient times, Aurangabad was located ...
. In this massacre, the
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
caste was victim; over 30 people were killed by Sena in this incident. However, it is reported that this incident set tone for decline of Sena. As the party of Lalu Prasad, which was in government took stringent administrative policies on one hand to counter Sena, on the other hand various
naxalite
Naxalism is the communist ideology of the Naxalites or Naxals, a grouping of political and insurgent groups from India. It is influenced by Maoist political sentiment and ideology.
Inspired by Maoism, Charu Majumdar wrote the Historic Eight ...
group also resolved their internal differences and started an extermination campaign of the men of Sena in small operations.
Combination of political and non-political conflicts
The society of Bihar was divided into
OBCs,
SCs and Forward Castes (upper caste); the
forward castes
Forward caste (or General caste) is a term used in India to denote castes which are not listed in SC, ST or OBC reservation lists. They are on average considered ahead of other castes economically and educationally. They account for about 30.8% ...
had dominated the democratic institutions of the state in the rule of
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
and only a section of OBCs were politically conscious to think of replacing them from political power, this section, which included only three caste (
Koeri
The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri), also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional oc ...
,
Kurmi
Kurmi is traditionally a non-elite tiller caste in the lower Gangetic plain of India, especially southern regions of Awadh, eastern Uttar Pradesh and parts of Bihar and Jharkhand. The Kurmis came to be known for their exceptional work ethic, ...
and
Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
) also owned land in other parts of Bihar, but was poor in the areas dominated of the forward castes. They took land on tenancy from the forward castes, as they were marginal farmers in these areas. A fair number of the OBCs were also employed in the state institutions and were among educated servicemen in the urban areas. They remained victims of the high handedness of the upper-caste colleagues and the rivalry between them was evolving over time.
In rural areas, the OBCs were also confronting the MBC or Extremely Backward Class (also called Most Backward Castes, the category which includes more than hundred Backward Castes, other than trio of Koeri, Kurmi and Yadav) and the Scheduled Castes, but the upper-castes treated all sections of Backward Castes in the same manner, causing much resentment among the elite section of the Backwards. In the rural areas, the upper-castes countered the Most Backward Classes and
Schedule Castes, when they wanted to eschew the village based livelihood options. They
pper-castesreacted violently, when the MBC or the SCs tried to detach from any social institutions, that were symbol of low caste status. Since for different reasons, the OBCs, MBCs and the SCs were all pitted against the common rivals, the upper-castes, and the bitterness between the OBCs and the forward castes had strengthened after the
anti-reservation protest launched by the upper-castes, unification of these social groups took place against the forward castes.
The rise of Lalu Prasad provided an opportunity to unite all these social groups and the
Naxalite
Naxalism is the communist ideology of the Naxalites or Naxals, a grouping of political and insurgent groups from India. It is influenced by Maoist political sentiment and ideology.
Inspired by Maoism, Charu Majumdar wrote the Historic Eight ...
groups, which had many OBCs in the leadership positions, also supported the political party led by Lalu.
Maoist Communist Centre of India, one of the most significant Naxalite group also sided with the interest of OBCs, and the
MCC activists started providing armed backing to the Most Backward Classes and the Schedule Castes to exercise their franchise in order to led the candidates of Lalu's party towards victory. Hence, for a while, the boundary between political and Naxalite movement got blurred.
According to Professor Shashi Bhushan Singh, Department of Sociology,
Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics (DSE), popularly referred to as D School, is an institution of higher learning within the Delhi University. The Delhi School of Economics is situated in University of Delhi's North Campus in Maurice Nagar. Establishe ...
, since the numerical strength of upper-caste (approximately 20% of state's population) was not enough to have large number of
MLAs
A Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected to sit in a legislative assembly. The term most commonly refers to members of the legislature of a federated state or an autonomous region, but is also used for several nationa ...
in the
state legislature
A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of ...
in order to control the Backward Castes, they resorted to undemocratic practices in order to retain the power in their hand, leading to rise of militancy among a section of Backwards.
According to Singh, when Lalu Prasad asked for support from the members of Backward Castes, he was actually asking it in order to change the entire social order, in which upper caste were at advantage. The reservation policy introduced by the implementation of
Mandal Commission
The Mandal Commission or the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBC), was established in India in 1979 by the Janata Party government under Prime Minister Morarji Desai with a mandate to "identify the socially or educatio ...
recommendations though didn't benefitted the Scheduled Castes, yet they supported Lalu Prasad against the forward castes.
According to a
Social Scientist
Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among members within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the ...
, who witnessed the encounter of Lalu with a person from the
Musahar
Musahar or Mushahar () are a Dalit community found in the eastern Gangetic plain and the Terai. They are also known as Rishidev, Sada, Manjhi, ''Banbasi''. The other names of the Musahar are Bhuiyan and Rajawar.
Origins and history
Etymolo ...
caste in North India, during his election campaign for 2000 Bihar Assembly elections, Lalu allegedly argued with latter, when he asked him to provide road infrastructure in the region. As per narrative, Lalu Prasad believed that the investment by state in physical infrastructure were somehow meant for benefitting the upper castes, who were having significant presence at the higher level of bureaucracy and in professional services. Hence, he blatantly created disruption in the general process of development, until the
Upper Backward Castes
The Upper Backward Caste is a term used to describe the middle castes in Bihar, whose social and ritual status was not very low and which have traditionally been involved in the agricultural and animal husbandry related activities in the past. ...
take over the Forward Castes in these services. A majority of the
District Magistrate
The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...
s during his tenure were from the Upper Backward Castes, and he also tried to ensure that the administrative posts at the middle level, for the rank of
Sub Divisional Magistrate
A sub-divisional magistrate, also known as assistant collector, sub collector, revenue divisional officer, or assistant commissioner, is the administrative head of a Subdivision (India), sub-division in an Indian district, exercising Executive (g ...
s (SDM) and
Block Development Officer
A block is an administrative division of some South Asian countries.
Bhutan
In Bhutan, a block is called a gewog. It is essentially for oil a group of villages. Gewogs are official administrative units of Bhutan. The country is composed of ...
(BDO) were also filled by these caste group only. For the professional services like
Doctor
Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to:
Titles and occupations
* Physician, a medical practitioner
* Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree
** Doctorate
** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...
s and
Engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...
s too, same formula was implemented.
According to author Arun Sinha, though Lalu and his colleague and successor
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
belonged to same political roots, in the matter of quota politics and the politics of social justice for the deprived section of society, Kumar was accepted to upper castes. One reason behind this was step taken by Kumar for exclusion of well off section of the
Backward Castes from the benefits of
reservation in government jobs and other state sponsored program for social upliftment. In contrast to Kumar, Lalu Prasad has been described by Sinha, and was perceived as a staunch anti-upper caste leader.
The tenure of Lalu Prasad and his wife Rabari Devi coincided with
Maoist Communist Centre becoming more violent than earlier. It was during Rabari Devi's tenure that Senari carnage against the
Bhumihar
Bhumihar, also locally called Bhuinhar and Babhan, a Hindu Indian caste system, caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila (region), Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya ...
s took place. In this incident, over hundred armed activists of MCC slaughtered 34 Bhumihars in the village called senari by brutally slitting their throats. As per reports, Rabari Devi refused to visit Senari, probably because the village inhabitants and victims, being member of Bhumihar caste had always opposed her government. It was reported that after being implicated in corruption scandal, Lalu Prasad raised his wife to the post of Chief Minister; latter was reportedly illiterate, but this was not offensive to the poor of Bihar. It is observed that for their plight, in the struggle against
Dalit
Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
dominated naxal groups like MCC, Bhumihars prefer to blame Lalu, who is described as a champion of lower castes.
Political symbolism
Lalu's politics is described as being against
Hindu Nationalism
Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expression of political thought, based on the native social and cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent. "Hindu nationalism" is a simplistic translation of . It is better descri ...
promoted by political parties like
Bhartiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's Bharatiya Jana Sangh. Since 2014, ...
. He employed
political symbolism to a large extent in order to confront the politics based on militant religious ideology. In April 2003, he is reported to have organised a great rally at
Gandhi Maidan
Gandhi Maidan is a historic ground in Patna, near the banks of the Ganges River, in Bihar, India. The Golghar falls to its west. During the period of 1824–1833, under British rule, it was used as a golf course and horse racing track and was ...
, Patna, which was aimed at radicalising his lower caste supporters and mobilising them against the politics of Bhartiya Janata Party and
Vishwa Hindu Parishad
Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) () is an Indian right-wing Hindu organisation based on Hindu nationalism. The VHP was founded in 1964 by M. S. Golwalkar and S. S. Apte in collaboration with Swami Chinmayananda. Its stated objective is "to orga ...
(VHP). In its rally, VHP was distributing ''
Trishul
Trishul may refer to:
Film
*Trishul (film), ''Trishul'' (film), a 1978 Hindi film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan
*Trisulam (film), ''Trisulam'' (film), a 1982 Telugu film starring Krishnam Raju and Sridevi
Military
*Trishul (missile) ...
s'' to the participants, which was a symbol of militant
Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
identity. Lalu asked his rural supporters to join him in Gandhi Maidan with a ''Lathi'' (a robust stick) against the ''Trishuls'' of VHP. He said that, this implement (''Lathi'') of the rural poor, which was considered as the weapon of weak, will destroy the ''Trishul'' of hatred (an implicit attack on BJP's and VHP's politics of religion).
As per an eyewitness report, on the day of rally, the rural lower caste supporters of Lalu Prasad rushed towards Patna; many of them were brought in hurry by the local leaders of the
Rashtriya Janata Dal
The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
to showcase their support to Lalu Prasad. The theme of the rally was, ''Bhajpa Bhagao Desh Bachao'' (get rid of Bhartiya Janata Party and save the country). The rallygoers flooded the city armed with ''Lathis'', and in their way to Patna, many of them occupied the trains rushing towards city forcefully. Many windows of the trains were thrashed and the hostels located in Patna were occupied for the rallygoers. The crowd was so massive that the traffic in the city was destabilized for two days. The supporters were told to apply
oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...
to their ''Lathis'' and recite the slogan: ''Lathi pilavan, Patna laavan, Bhajpa bhagavan, Desh bachavan'' (we will apply oil to our Lathis, bring it to Patna, remove the Bhartiya Janata Party and save the country). The large gathering of followers of Lalu Prasad in capital city of state of Bihar sybmolised the capture of the real centre of power by latter, as the city was reported to have flooded with ''Lathi'' welding supporters of Rashtriya Janata Dal, who were mostly the lower caste people coming from rural background.
1996 Gareeb Rally
Lalu's rally were contact point between him and his rural supporters. In 1996, a massive "rally of the poor" (Gareeb Rally) was organised by Janata Dal. Author
Bela Bhatia, who was an eyewitness of this rally organised at
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
has mentioned that the poor people who assembled at Patna, were provided free commutation facility to become a part of this rally. There were numerous programmes organised by the office bearers of the
Janata Dal
Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
for the rallyites. Bhatia has mentioned about the Trains, that were running on
Arrah
Arrah (also transliterated as Ara) is a city and a municipal corporation in Bhojpur district, India, Bhojpur district (formerly known as Shahabad district) in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the headquarters of Bhojpur district, India, Bhojpur ...
-
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
route, and carrying the rallyites to Patna. As she described the trains and buses were carrying more passengers than their capacity. Many of the people congregated at Patna either to lodge their grievances to the Chief Minister or in the hope of getting some monetary help. Bhatia describes an event being sponsored by Janata Dal legislator
Shyam Rajak for the entertainment of rallyites, symbolising the acquaintance of the Chief Minister, Lalu Prasad with the taste of his rural supporters.
Elevation of grassroot workers to important position
In contrast to elections being based on money power, and the phenomenon of most of the candidates getting elected to houses of legislature in Bihar belonging to high income groups, RJD under Lalu Prasad has raised grassroot political workers from poor background to important positions in the politics of state. This is done occasionally to showcase the pro-poor stand of Lalu Prasad. In 2022, Lalu led election of a Dalit woman, Munni Rajak from
Dhobi caste (washerman) to the seventy-five membered
Bihar Legislative Council
Bihar Legislative assembly also known as Bihar Vidhan Parishad is the upper house of the bicameral Bihar Legislature of the state of Bihar in India.
History
A new Province of Bihar and Odisha was created by the Government of India on 12 Decem ...
. Another example is of
Ramvrikish Sada, the Rashtriya Janata Dal MLA from
Alauli Assembly constituency,
Khagaria district
Khagaria district is an administrative district in the state of Bihar in India. The district headquarters are located at Khagaria. Earlier it was a part of Munger District as a sub-division that was created in 1943–44. It was upgraded to the ...
. Sada has even claimed that, he and his family worship Lalu Prasad besides Sabari, the deity of Musahars. Sada, who was associated with RJD for thirty years was reported to be the poorest MLA of Bihar in 2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly elections. He claimed that even money for running in election was provided to him by family of Lalu Prasad and he has just
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
70,000 in his bank account.
Corruption charges and conviction
Corruption cases
Lalu Prasad has been convicted and jailed in two scams. As of January 2018, he, his wife
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
, his sons
Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
and
Tej Pratap Yadav
Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is an Indian politician. He was cabinet minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of Bihar. He is the elder son of former Chief Ministers of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri D ...
, and his eldest daughter
Misha Bharti were all facing charges in several other corruption cases.
[Railways tender case: ED attaches land owned by Lalu's family in Patna]
, Times of India
''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
, 8 Dec 2017.
1996 Fodder Scam – 1st case
Lalu was an accused party and later convicted in the first Fodder Scam case of 1996. The case involved the siphoning off of about
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
4.50 billion (
$111.85 million) from the animal husbandry department.
Several allegations of embezzlement from the animal husbandry department were tabled between 1990 and 1995. In January 1996, a raid conducted on Chaibasa treasury indicated the siphoning off of funds by non-existent companies. Lalu ordered an inquiry to probe the irregularities. However, after a
public interest litigation
The chief instrument through which judicial activism has flourished in India is public interest litigation (PIL) or social action litigation (SAL). It refers to litigation undertaken to secure public interest and demonstrates the availability ...
, the
Bihar High Court in March 1996 ordered the case to be handed over to the CBI.
In June 1997, the CBI filed the charge sheet in the case and made Lalu an accused. The charge forced Lalu Prasad to resign from the office of Chief Minister, at which time he appointed his wife, Rabri Devi, to the office.
In 2001, the
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...
transferred the scam cases to newly formed court in Ranchi, Jharkhand. The trial began in 2002. In August 2013, Lalu Prasad tried to get the trial court judge transferred, but his plea was rejected by Supreme Court of India. Lalu has been an accused in many of the 53-odd cases filed. He has been remanded to custody on multiple occasions because of the number of cases. Over 64 people were convicted in the case. Lalu was first sent to "Judicial remand" (Bihar Military Police guest house,
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
) on 30 July 1997, for 134 days.
On 28 October 1998, he was again sent to the same guest house for 73 days. When the Supreme Court took exception to his guest house stay, he had also moved to the Beur jail in Patna. On 26 November 2001, Lalu was again remanded, in a case related to the fodder scam. Lalu accused the NDA of creating a conspiracy against him. On 1 October 2004, the Supreme Court served a notice to Lalu Prasad and his wife in response to a petition which alleged that they have been interfering with the investigation.
Lalu, along with 44 other accused, was convicted on 30 September 2013 after being found guilty in fraudulent withdrawal of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
37 crores (
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
370 million) from Chaibasa treasury.
Several other politicians, IAS officers were also convicted in the case.
Immediately after the verdict was pronounced, Lalu was arrested and taken to Birsa Munda Central Jail, located at Ranchi.
Lalu Prasad was disqualified as MP for six years.
He was given a jail sentence of five years and a fine of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
25
lakh
A lakh (; abbreviated L; sometimes written lac) is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand (100,000; scientific notation: 105). In the Indian 2, 2, 3 convention of digit grouping, it is written as 1,00,000. F ...
(
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
2.5 million).
He was released on bail from Birsa Munda Central Jail, after he completed the bail formalities in a Special CBI court, months after his conviction.
1998 disproportionate assets case
In 1998, a
disproportionate assets (DA) case arising out of the fodder scam was registered against Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi. In April 2000, both were made co-accused in the charge-sheet and surrendered. While Rabri Devi got bail due to being Chief Minister of Bihar, Lalu was remanded in Beur jail for 11 days.
They were acquitted in 2006. The Bihar government wanted to appeal against the acquittal but the Supreme Court in 2010 ruled that the state government can not challenge such rulings.
1996 Fodder Scam – 2nd case
Lalu Prasad was convicted and jailed in the second Fodder Scam case of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
8.927 million
["Judgement in third fodder scam case against Lalu Yadav on January 24"]
, The Economic Times
''The Economic Times'' is an Indian English-language business-focused daily newspaper. Owned by The Times Group, ''The Economic Times'' began publication in 1961 and it is sold in all major cities in India. As of 2012, it is the world's secon ...
, 11 January 2018. on the same day 23 December 2017 when his daughter Misha Bharti was also charged by the
Enforcement Directorate
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is a law enforcement and economic intelligence agency of the Government of India. Established on 1 May 1956, it is responsible for enforcing economic laws and combating financial crimes. The ED operates under th ...
of having disproportionate assets.
[Lalu Prasad Yadav convicted in second fodder scam case](_blank)
, Economic Times, 23 Dec 2017. Lalu Prasad was convicted 23 December 2017 and sentenced on 6 January 2018 to 3 years' imprisonment and
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
1,000,000 fine for the fraudulent withdrawal of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
8,900,000 from the
Deoghar
Deoghar (pronounced ''Devghar'') is a city and a municipal corporation in Deoghar district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is also the administrative headquarters of Deoghar district. It is a holy place of Hinduism. The city is primarily ...
district treasury between 1990 and 1994.
1996 Fodder Scam – 3rd case
This case, pertaining to scamming
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
356.2 million scammed from the
Chaibasa
Chaibasa is a small town and a municipality in West Singhbhum district in the state of Jharkhand, India. Chaibasa is the district headquarters of West Singhbhum district. It is also the headquarter of Singhbhum Kolhan division headed by the D ...
treasury of
West Singhbhum district
West Singhbhum or Pashchimi Singhbhum is one of the 24 districts of Jharkhand state, India. It came into existence on 16 January 1990, when the old Singhbhum district (then in Bihar) was bifurcated. Chaibasa is the district headquarters.
The d ...
,
1996 Fodder Scam – 4th case
Lalu Prasad was convicted by the special CBI court in the fourth fodder scam case relating to alleged withdrawal of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
3.13 crore from the
Dumka district
Dumka district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state in eastern India. Dumka is the administrative headquarters of this district. This district covers an area of 3716.02 km. This district has a population of 1,321,442 (20 ...
treasury over two decades ago.
CBI Judge awarded him two separate sentences of seven years each under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Acts.
1996 Fodder Scam – 5th case
This case, pertaining to the scamming
Lalu Prasad has been found guilty of illegal withdrawals of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
139.35 crore from the Doranda treasury by a special CBI court in Jharkhand's Ranchi on 15 February 2022. In February 2022 A CBI court sentenced to five years jail term in fifth case and imposed a fine of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
60 lakh.
2005 Indian Railway tender scam
2005 Indian Railway tender scam better known as Land-for-Jobs Scam, investigated by the
CBI, is the bribery and corruption case where Lalu Prasad and his family are charged for illegally receiving prime property from the bidder as a bribe for corruptly awarding the Railway tender during Lalu's tenure as Railway Minister.
Transfer of these properties as bribe to Lalu and his children were disguised using the
shell companies
A shell corporation is a company or corporation with no significant assets or operations often formed to obtain financing before beginning business. Shell companies were primarily vehicles for lawfully hiding the identity of their beneficial ...
; for example, wife
Rabri Devi
Rabri Devihttp://ceobihar.nic.in/election/GeneralElection2014/PC20/S04-Bihar-20--May-2014%20(%20GEN%20)-3-RABRI%20DEVI.PDFhttps://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3285e19f20beded7d215102b49d5c09a0/uploads/2023/05/2023051796.pdf ( Devanagri: राबड़ी ...
and three children,
Misha Bharti,
Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
and
Tej Pratap Yadav
Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is an Indian politician. He was cabinet minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of Bihar. He is the elder son of former Chief Ministers of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri D ...
, received Saguna Mor Mall property worth
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
45 crore through a shell company named Delight Marketing (renamed as Lara properties), and another shell company AB Exports was used to transfer properties worth
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
40 crore for a price of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
4 lakh to Lalu's other three children Tejashwi Yadav, Ragini and Chanda.
[After Lalu's conviction, kids to face heat for 'benami assets', ''Economic Times'', 7 January 2018.](_blank)
[ED attaches Lalu Prasad Yadav's Rs 45-cr Patna plot, ''DNA India'', 9 December 2017.](_blank)
This case spawned several other related but independent cases, such as disproportionate assets case as well as tax avoidance case by ED.
Under the
Benami Transactions Prohibition Act recipient of such
benami properties can be imprisoned for up to 7 years and fined up to 25% fair market value, and convicted politicians are barred from contesting elections or holding elected position for six years.
2017 Delight Properties case
Investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), against Lalu, his wife, son Tejashwi, daughter Misha and others, arose from the alleged illegal proceeds of the 2005 Indian Railway tender scam.
The I-T department issued summons for 12 June 2017 to Misha Bharti, over Benami land deals worth
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
10 billion (
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
1,000 crores).
Misha was officially charged by ED in disproportionate assets case on the same day her father was convicted again in the second fodder scam.
[Lalu Convicted Again on Corruption Charges]
, Patna Daily, 23 Dec 2017. After the CBI lodged an FIR on 5 July 2017, ED filed the Case Information Report (ECIR) on 27 July 2017 against Lalu, his wife Rabri, their younger son Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and others in the railways tender corruption and
ill-gotten property scam that happened during Lalu's tenure as the Railway Minister.
Taking action against this scam, ED of
Income Tax Department
The Income Tax Department (also referred to as IT Department; abbreviated as ITD) is a government agency undertaking direct tax collection of the government of the Republic of India. It functions under the Department of Revenue of the Mini ...
on 12 September 2017
attached more than 12 properties in Patna and Delhi including the plot for the mall in Patna, a farm house in Delhi and up-market land in
Palam Vihar in Delhi.
This includes the transfer of
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
450 million (
₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
45 crore) Seguna mor
benami property transferred to Lalu's wife Rabri Devi and children Tejashwi Yadav and
Tej Pratap Yadav
Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is an Indian politician. He was cabinet minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of Bihar. He is the elder son of former Chief Ministers of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri D ...
by using a
shell company
A shell corporation is a company or corporation with no significant assets or operations often formed to obtain financing before beginning business. Shell companies were primarily vehicles for lawfully hiding the identity of their beneficial ...
named Delight Properties, which was later renamed as Lara Properties.
[ (Updated: 7 Jan 2018)
]
2017 AB Exports cases
AB Exports was a shell company
A shell corporation is a company or corporation with no significant assets or operations often formed to obtain financing before beginning business. Shell companies were primarily vehicles for lawfully hiding the identity of their beneficial ...
used to transfer, as a bribe for the railway tender scam, ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
400 million (₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
40 crore) benami property for a mere price of ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
400,000 to Lalu's 3 children Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
, Ragini Yadav and Chanda Singh.[ ED has attached this property and booked the 3 accused children of Lalu.][ (Updated: 7 Jan 2018)
]
2017 Patna zoo soil scam
2017 Patna zoo soil scam is an allegation/case against Lalu Prasad and his sons Tej Pratap Yadav
Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is an Indian politician. He was cabinet minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of Bihar. He is the elder son of former Chief Ministers of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri D ...
and Tejashwi Yadav
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav (born 9 November 1989) is an Indian politician and former professional cricketer who served for two terms as the deputy chief minister of Bihar. He is the son of former chief ministers of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabr ...
for the "gross irregularities" of selling soil from the construction of Tej Pratap's Saguna Mor mall basement. The bogus beautification scheme was for ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
90 lakh to Patna zoo without inviting any tenders when Tej Pratap was the minister of environment and forest in Bihar, a department that controls the zoo. The scam came to the light in April 2017, a public interest litigation
The chief instrument through which judicial activism has flourished in India is public interest litigation (PIL) or social action litigation (SAL). It refers to litigation undertaken to secure public interest and demonstrates the availability ...
(PIL) was filed in Patna High Court
The Patna High Court of Judicature at Patna (commonly known as Patna High Court) is the High Courts of India, High Court of the Indian state, state of Bihar. It was established on 3 February 1916 by British colonial government and was later aff ...
in October 2017, court ordered the Bihar government to furnish the details of investigation, following which the case was handed over to Bihar Vigilance Investigation Bureau (VIB) department for the investigation under the Pollution Control Board Act, the Environment Protection Act and Wildlife Protection Act (1972) (update: 6 Jan 2018).[Govt report dismisses Patna zoo soil purchase scam](_blank)
22 April 2017, Business Standard, 2017.
, Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, an entity controlled by the Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia, the daughter o ...
, 2017.
The Bihar government said that official procedure was duly followed in the case and prima facie no evidence of irregularity has come into light in zoo soil deal. (Updated: 31 May 2020)
Bail
Lalu Prasad was convicted in the controversial Fodder Scam, and was serving a term until 17 April 2021, when he was granted bail from the Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
High Court in the corruption scandal.
Criticism
Corruption, nepotism and dynasticism
Lalu Prasad is one of the first noted politicians to lose parliamentary seat on being arrested in fodder scam as per Supreme Court decision banning convicted legislators to hold their posts. During his tenure as Chief Minister, Bihar's law and order was at lowest, kidnapping was on rise and private armies mushroomed. He was also criticized by opposition in the Shilpi-Gautam Murder case and the death of his daughter Ragini Yadav's friend, Abhishek Mishra, in mysterious circumstances.
Criticism on Yadavisation
Lalu's rule witnessed Yadav caste becoming assertive in the rural and urban landscape of Bihar, leading his opponents to coin the slogan of "Yadavisation" of Bihar's polity and administration. This fact was used by other political parties to dislodge his government on the charges of working for the benefit of a single caste group at the cost of various other backward communities. According to a report of Indian Human Development Survey (2011–12), Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
s topped in average per capita income with ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
28,093, the other upper castes of Bihar which comprises Rajputs have an average per capita income of ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
20,655, closely followed by middle agrarian castes like Kushwaha
Kushwaha (sometimes Kushvaha), is a community of the Indo-Gangetic Plain that has traditionally been involved in agriculture, including beekeeping. The term has been used to represent different sub-castes of the Kachhis, Kachhvahas, Koeris ...
s and Kurmi
Kurmi is traditionally a non-elite tiller caste in the lower Gangetic plain of India, especially southern regions of Awadh, eastern Uttar Pradesh and parts of Bihar and Jharkhand. The Kurmis came to be known for their exceptional work ethic, ...
s earning ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
18,811 and ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
17,835 respectively as their average per capita income. In contrast, Yadav
Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
s' income is one of the lowest among OBCs at ₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
12,314, which is slightly less than the rest of OBCs (₹
The Indian rupee sign ⟨₹⟩ is the currency symbol for the Indian rupee (ISO 4217: INR), the official currency of India. Designed by D. Udaya Kumar, it was presented to the public by the Government of India on 15 July 2010, following its ...
12,617). Hence, despite the political mobilisation of backward castes in post mandal period, the upper-caste are still the highest income groups in Bihar. According to this report, the economic benefits of the Mandal politics could be seen as affecting only few backward castes of agrarian background leading to their upward mobilisation. The Yadavs hence transformed their assertiveness to the upward mobility in the politics only while the other "Backward Castes" gained momentum in the other fields, though still the upper-caste dominance was retained in upper echelon of bureaucracy.
Writings
Lalu Prasad has written his autobiography named ''Gopalganj to Raisina Road''.
Filmography
* Padmashree Laloo Prasad Yadav (Bollywood), as himself (special appearance)
* Mahua ( Bhojiwood)
* Gudri Ke Lal ( Bhojiwood)
In media
Books
*A writer named Neena Jha has written a book on Lalu Prasad named ''Lalu Prasad, India's miracle''.
*Book named Laloo'' Prasad Yadav: A Charismatic Leader'' was published in 1996.
*''"The Making of Laloo Yadav, The Unmaking of Bihar"'', updated and reprinted under the title ''"Subaltern Sahib: Bihar and the Making of Laloo Yadav"'', is a book based on Lalu's life by Sankarshan Thakur.
Films
* Padmashree Laloo Prasad Yadav, the Hindi-language film was released in 2005. It was based on a girl named Padmshree, her boyfriend Laloo, her lawyer Prasad and Yadav was Lalu Prasad himself as a special appearance.
*Upcoming Bhojpuri
Bhojpuri may refer to:
* Bhojpuri language, an Indo-Aryan language of India and Nepal
* Bhojpuri grammar, grammatical rules of the language
* Bhojpuri nouns, nouns of the language
* Bhojpuri people, people who speak the language
* Bhojpuri region ...
film ''Lalten'' is a biopic based on the life of Lalu Prasad.
See also
*List of politicians from Bihar
This is a list of politicians from Bihar, India. It includes leaders from different political parties.
{, class="wikitable sortable"
, +
, -
! Name !! Image !! Association !! Constituency
, Positions/Offices/Roles
, -
, Rajendra Prasad
,
, ...
*History of Backward Caste movement in Bihar
The Backward Caste movement in Bihar can be traced back to the formation of Triveni Sangh, a caste coalition and political party, in the 1930s, which was revived after the introduction of Land reform in India, land reforms in the 1950s aimed at ...
References
Notes
Citations
External links
*
, -
, -
, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yadav, Lalu Prasad
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