Law Kumar Mishra
Patna, September 10
One of the founders of the RJD Raghuwansh Prasad Singh on Thursday resigned from the primary membership of the party.
And when he took the shocking decision, he had been recuperating in the ICU room of AIIMS, New Delhi.
Ironically, the resignation letter has been addressed to party president Lalu Prasad who is also in the hospital bed at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital bed in Ranchi.
Lalu Prasad however “rejected” it and wrote to Raghuwansh Prasad Singh: “Aap kahin nahi ja rahe hain, baith kar mil jul kar baat karenge (You are not going anywhere. You are not leaving, we will meet and discuss).”
Lalu also said he could not believe it was written by Raghuwansh Babu. Raghuwansh had written a letter in 38 words snapping his 32 years ties with Lalu Prasad.
The former professor of Mathematics who taught students in Bihar University was brief in his letter.
Raghuwansh Prasad Singh is admitted in the ICU of AIIMS in critical condition following Corona infection. He is on oxygen support too. He had recovered from Corona last month when he was admitted to Patna AIIMS. Later, the 74 years-old former union minister who started his political career with Lalu in 1977 was rushed to a leading private hospital at Gurugram.
Two days back, he was shifted to ICU in AIIMS. His family members claimed the resignation letter written on a plain paper was signed and written by Raghuwansh Babu himself. In his emotional letter, the septuagenarian leader said he was solidly with Lalu for the last 32 years after the death of Karpoori Thakur.
“But, now it is all over,” he said, thanking the party workers for their support and told Lalu he was quitting the party. Last month he had resigned as vice-president of the party also following admission of his political rival Rama Singh in the party. Rama, a strong man of Vaishali, had defeated Raghuwansh Babu in 2014 elections.
The veteran Socialist leader was feeling uncomfortable in the organisation since the younger son of Lalu, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav took over the leadership and started ignoring him. Raghuwansh had written a letter to Lalu in January this year and had complained against Tejashwi ‘s style of functioning and alleged humiliations to senior party leaders.
He had gone to Ranchi also to register his protest against Tejashwi.
He was upset with the “dictatorship” of the party president, Jagdanand Singh in Bihar. Raghuwansh had regretted that the new party president was behaving like an autocrat and had closed the entrance of the party for common workers. His complaints and grievances were ignored.
His family members today said he was feeling hurt over the statement of the elder son of Lalu. Tejpratap Yadav, who had commented that taking out water in a Lota (water pot) from the Ocean, will have no effect on the party. He compared the veteran leader and contemporary of Lalu as Lota.
Departure of Raghuwansh from the RJD will have adverse effect on the political fortunes of two sons of Lalu who are MLAs from the constituencies represented by Raghuwansh and his supporters since 1977. He enjoyed considerable influence on the Rajput voters of the area and their revolt in the coming assembly elections may harm the junior Lalus.
Tejpratap is already in trouble with the announcement that his estranged wife-Aishwarya will contest the elections against him. Now, Tejpratap has decided to shift to Hasanpur, a Yadav dominated constituency in neighbouring Samastipur from Mahua in Vaishali.
Raghuwansh had started his career in electoral politics in 1977, the same year when Lalu was first elected to Lok Sabha. Raghuwansh was energy minister in Karpoori Thakur ministry, later he became the chairman of Bihar Legislative Council.
He was elected to Lok Sabha four times and was union minister for rural development in the UPA government. He had piloted the now popular National rural employment guarantee Bill which later became MNREGA.
Loss of RJD will be a gain for JDU. He is expected to join JDU after getting discharged from the hospital, JDU sources indicated. Feelers have been sent from BJP also.
