PATNA, January 9: Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad Yadav is apparently having second thoughts about contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Indications to this effect were available at his Anne Road residence here yesterday, though none of his confidantes were willing to go on record.Laloo had last week indicated he would contest from Madhepura, a north Bihar constituency that sent Sharad Yadav to the last Lok Sabha. The two Yadavs have long since fallen out with each other and Laloo singled out Madhepura as their personal battleground.
A top RJD functionary who did not want to be named told The Indian Express yesterday that by making known his intention to contest from Madhepura, Laloo had successfully boosted the morale of the party's rank and file. "But it is significant that five of the sitting MLAs from Madhepura remain with the Janata Dal and have not joined the RJD," the source pointed out. In other words, Madhepura may not be a cakewalk for Laloo, his public posturing
notwithstanding. Madhepura has traditionally been anti-Congress in its outlook and Laloo's dalliance with that party this time will not endear him to voters there.
It also stands to reason that Laloo may not be overly enthused about becoming a "mere" MP, unless he believes he has a good chance of becoming Prime Minister. In all his 20-plus years in mainstream politics, he has only once been an MP and that too for barely two years, before returning to Bihar politics.
RJD functionaries who spoke to this newspaper said the current line of thinking is that Laloo would serve the party better by being the star campaigner at large rather than be hamstrung by also being a candidate. They believe that since his conventional vote bank among the Yadavs and Muslims have not been affected, he would do well to concentrate on, for example, the Purnea-Katihar region which ignored seven of his handpicked candidates last time around.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
