News Analysis India

Tag: Tej Pratap Yadav

  • Tej Pratap courts controversy after he takes his brother-in-law to official meeting

    Express News Service

    PATNA: RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s maverick son and Bihar environment and forest minister Tej Pratap Yadav has landed in trouble after a picture showing his brother-in-law Shailesh Kumar sitting in an official meeting became public.

    Shailesh is the husband of Lalu`s eldest daughter Misa Bharti who is also a Rajya Sabha member.

    Tej Pratap was holding a meeting with officers from Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB) when Shailesh was also found sitting next to the chairman of BSPCB.

    Tej Pratap, who was the health minister when the RJD-led grand alliance was in power from 2025 and 2017, is known for his ‘unconventional’ methods. But more surprisingly, even his elder brother and deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav who is holding the health portfolio also landed in controversy when his close aide and political advisor Sanjay Yadav was also seen along with him in a meeting of the departmental officers.

    Sanjay Yadav attended the meeting even when he was not holding any official position. In the departmental meetings, only ministers and officers concerned are allowed to attend the meeting.

    Taking a dig at Tej Pratap, state BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand said,” RJD is a family party. Serving family selfish interests is its prime duty. Tej Pratap will prove the best minister if the blessing of Shaiesh Bhai continues.”

    PATNA: RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s maverick son and Bihar environment and forest minister Tej Pratap Yadav has landed in trouble after a picture showing his brother-in-law Shailesh Kumar sitting in an official meeting became public.

    Shailesh is the husband of Lalu`s eldest daughter Misa Bharti who is also a Rajya Sabha member.

    Tej Pratap was holding a meeting with officers from Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB) when Shailesh was also found sitting next to the chairman of BSPCB.

    Tej Pratap, who was the health minister when the RJD-led grand alliance was in power from 2025 and 2017, is known for his ‘unconventional’ methods. But more surprisingly, even his elder brother and deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav who is holding the health portfolio also landed in controversy when his close aide and political advisor Sanjay Yadav was also seen along with him in a meeting of the departmental officers.

    Sanjay Yadav attended the meeting even when he was not holding any official position. In the departmental meetings, only ministers and officers concerned are allowed to attend the meeting.

    Taking a dig at Tej Pratap, state BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand said,” RJD is a family party. Serving family selfish interests is its prime duty. Tej Pratap will prove the best minister if the blessing of Shaiesh Bhai continues.”

  • RJD’s Tej Pratap threatens to release videos of abuse suffered in marriage

    By PTI

    PATNA: RJD president Lalu Prasad’s mercurial elder son Tej Pratap Yadav, who is caught in a marital dispute, has threatened to wash some dirty linen in public.

    Yadav came out with a video statement, nearly seven minutes long, fulminating against a news portal which had carried a report about his divorce case, apparently presenting him in a poor light.

    “I can come out with countless video clips and other evidence to prove the physical and verbal abuse suffered by me, my parents and my siblings,” said Yadav who claimed to have “maintained silence” ever since he filed a petition seeking divorce four years ago.

    The maverick RJD MLA had tied the knot with Aishwarya Rai, a granddaughter of late former chief minister Daroga Prasad Rai, in May 2018.

    Their union lasted for less than six months.

    Aishwarya stayed on at the house of mother-in-law Rabri Devi, a former CM herself, in an apparent bid to save her marriage before storming out on a rainy winter night, alleging before a posse of journalists that she had been driven out.

    Her father Chandrika Rai vowed to avenge the insult “politically” and quit the RJD to join Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), but failed to retain his pocket borough Parsa assembly seat in 2020.

    Yadav, who remains in news for his mood swings with close party aides and family members at the receiving end, alleged that “the RSS” and “the other side” in his divorce case were hatching a conspiracy to malign him.

    “I too have evidences which I have not shared because these involve a young woman (ladki) which makes the matter sentimental (sic),” said Yadav and warned that he might pull no punches if the smear campaign did not end.

    In the video statement released on Tuesday, he also urged media outlets to abide by a family court order restraining journalists from reporting the divorce case proceedings.

    Yadav and Aishwarya were last seen together at the Patna High Court a month ago for counselling, which is mandatory for all couples seeking divorce.

    PATNA: RJD president Lalu Prasad’s mercurial elder son Tej Pratap Yadav, who is caught in a marital dispute, has threatened to wash some dirty linen in public.

    Yadav came out with a video statement, nearly seven minutes long, fulminating against a news portal which had carried a report about his divorce case, apparently presenting him in a poor light.

    “I can come out with countless video clips and other evidence to prove the physical and verbal abuse suffered by me, my parents and my siblings,” said Yadav who claimed to have “maintained silence” ever since he filed a petition seeking divorce four years ago.

    The maverick RJD MLA had tied the knot with Aishwarya Rai, a granddaughter of late former chief minister Daroga Prasad Rai, in May 2018.

    Their union lasted for less than six months.

    Aishwarya stayed on at the house of mother-in-law Rabri Devi, a former CM herself, in an apparent bid to save her marriage before storming out on a rainy winter night, alleging before a posse of journalists that she had been driven out.

    Her father Chandrika Rai vowed to avenge the insult “politically” and quit the RJD to join Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), but failed to retain his pocket borough Parsa assembly seat in 2020.

    Yadav, who remains in news for his mood swings with close party aides and family members at the receiving end, alleged that “the RSS” and “the other side” in his divorce case were hatching a conspiracy to malign him.

    “I too have evidences which I have not shared because these involve a young woman (ladki) which makes the matter sentimental (sic),” said Yadav and warned that he might pull no punches if the smear campaign did not end.

    In the video statement released on Tuesday, he also urged media outlets to abide by a family court order restraining journalists from reporting the divorce case proceedings.

    Yadav and Aishwarya were last seen together at the Patna High Court a month ago for counselling, which is mandatory for all couples seeking divorce.

  • RJD leader alleges assault by Lalu’s son Tej Pratap at Rabri Devi’s Iftar

    By PTI

    PATNA: High drama was witnessed at the RJD headquarters here on Monday when an office-bearer of its youth wing arrived announcing that he was resigning in protest against alleged misbehaviour of Tej Pratap Yadav, the mercurial elder son of national president Lalu Prasad.

    Ramraj Yadav, who heads the city unit of Yuva RJD, alleged that he was stripped, beaten up and abused by Tej Pratap, with the help of his loyal supporters, inside the house of the latter’s mother Rabri Devi on Friday when the house of the former Chief Minister was teeming with visitors at an Iftar party she had hosted.

    ALSO READ: Lalu Prasad Yadav’s elder son Tej Pratap to quit RJD soon

    The visitors included the top brass of RJD besides Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, state industries minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain and former LJP president Chirag Paswan, among others.

    “I was assigned to look after the arrangements at one of the numerous tents put up inside the bungalow. Tej Pratap got furious upon spotting me, though I was there armed with party communication. He took me inside a room where his men took off my clothes and beat me up”, alleged the party leader. 

    He claimed that Tej Pratap kept egging on his henchmen while Ramraj was being humiliated and that he even got the entire episode videographed.

    “I challenge Tej Pratap to come out in public with the video. People will see his real face. He used expletives, not just against me, but (younger brother) Tejashwi Yadav and even (father) Lalu Prasad”, alleged Ramraj who claimed that he had brought the matter to the notice of Tejashwi and state unit president Jagadanand Singh.

    “Tej Pratap had threatened to get me killed. He even named a party MLA with criminal antecedents whom he intended to pitch in for getting me bumped off. My hair still stands on end when I recall the entire episode. The party leadership seems to be in no mood to act. So here I am with my resignation”, said Rajaram.

    RJD sources were, predictably, tight-lipped over the episode which comes as the latest controversy surrounding the maverick elder son of the party’s founding chief.

    In active politics for less than a decade, Tej Pratap has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, ranging from his personal life to his run-ins with those active in the party.

    Tejashwi, the RJD heir apparent and the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, who is often himself at the receiving end of his elder brother’s tantrums, was asked about the episode by journalists.

    He chose to hurry past, muttering under his breath that the matter will be investigated.

    Meanwhile, the BJP which has always been quick to fish in troubled waters whenever the temperamental Tej Pratap courts a controversy, promptly came out with a reaction.

    BJP OBC morcha national general secretary and state spokesperson Nikhil Anand underscored Rajaram’s contention that Yadavs were ill-treated in the RJD, notwithstanding the fact that its first family belonged to the caste.

    “It seems Tej Pratap has a grouse against Yadavs who are well-educated, particularly those hailing from Patna district”, said Anand, himself a Yadav, who also recalled the instances involving former Union minister and Ram Kripal Yadav and Sanoj Yadav, both of whom are now with BJP.

    Ram Kripal Yadav was seen as Lalu Prasad’s Man Friday until he broke ranks in 2014, fought on a BJP ticket and defeated his former mentor’s daughter Misa Bharti.

    Popular in Patna since he was the Deputy Mayor decades ago, Ram Kripal is said to have been upset over the treatment he received from the RJD supremo’s elder son.

    Sanoj Yadav had quit the party in 2017 after Tej Pratap, then the state health minister, had beat him up at an Iftar party hosted by Prasad, who was then out of jail.

  • Lalu Prasad Yadav’s son Tej Pratap to quit RJD soon

    Express News Service

    PATNA: Three days after an RJD functionary accused party supremo Lalu Prasad’s elder son Tej Pratap Yadav of hurling abuses and subsequently thrashing him, the latter expressed his willingness on Monday to resign from the party.

    Apparently hurt by the allegation, Tej Pratap on Monday tweeted on his official Twitter handle, “I will resign from RJD’s primary membership after calling on my father. I have always tried to follow ideals of my father and honoured the workers of the party.”

    मैं अपने पिता के नक्शे कदम पर चलने का काम किया । सभी कार्यकर्ताओं को सम्मान दिया जल्द अपने पिता से मिलकर अपना इस्तीफा दूंगा ।@laluprasadrjd @RJDforIndia @yadavtejashwi @RabriDeviRJD @MisaBharti @Chiranjeev_INC
    — Tej Pratap Yadav (@TejYadav14) April 25, 2022
    Tej Pratap’s remarks came close on the heels of allegations levelled by Ramraj Yadav, Patna town unit president of the RJD Youth wing on April 22. Ramraj alleged that he was assaulted by Tej Pratap and his close aides when he was busy in preparations for the ‘iftar’ party.

    The incident took place at 10, Circular Road residence of former chief minister Rabri Devi. The RJD youth wing leader alleged that he was confined in a room and brutally beaten up. The incident was video recorded. Insiders in the party said that Tej Pratap was not happy with Ramraj Ramraj who lodged a formal complaint against him with senior leaders of the party, including state president Jagadanand Singh and demanded action against him.

    Tej’s younger brother and leader of opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav was also informed about the misbehaviour with Ramraj at Rabri Devi’s residence on the day the ‘iftar’ feast was organised. Tej Prasad’s relationship with state chief Jagadanand is an open secret. The differences between the two leaders cropped up when a close aide of Tej Pratap was removed from the youth wing’s state chief last year.

    On being contacted, Tej Pratap denied the charges levelled against him by Ramraj. “He is making allegations against him after being instigated by Jagadanand Singh, Sunil Singh (MLC) and Sanjay Yadav (Tejashwi’s adviser),” he added.

    Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, industries minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain and Jamui MP Chirag Paswan were prominent among others who attended the ‘iftar’ party hosted by the RJD family on April 22.

  • Lalu’s elder son Tej Pratap Yadav blames party leaders for defeat in by-polls

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Soon after results of assembly by-polls went in favour of ruling JD-U, leader of opposition in the state assembly Tejashwi Yadav said that defeat on the seats might have come out but the RJD had got more votes than ever before.

    Taking to twitter, Tejashwi Yadav said:” We fought on two seats with full strength against the alliance of five ruling allies. The RJD has got more votes than ever before. Hearty thanks to the voters”.

    He continued adding in the tweet that the RJD made the people living in villages know about the reality of claimed work of development.

    “The people of Bihar want change and change will happen.”

    But Lalu’s elder son Tej Pratap Yadav openly blamed the state president of RJD Jagdanand Singh and two others for the defeat of the party in assembly by-polls.

    One of the senior RJD leaders, preferring anonymity, said: “We were convinced of the victory on both the seats having seen the massive crowds at every election rally, addressed by both Tejashwi Yadav and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav in the by-polls. But it has become again clear that the crowd at the election rally, especially during the assembly elections, did not convert into votes. We got misled by the crowd”.

    He admitted that the difference cropped up with the Congress party over the claim of Kusheshwarasthan assembly seat also damaged the RJD. Arun Kumar Pandey-one of the acclaimed political analysts of Bihar attributed the defeat of RJD in assembly by-polls to the overconfidence of its leaders.

    “Now, those days are almost gone in Bihar when only caste card used to help the party like RJD in elections to win the seats. The RJD’s stand taken with the Congress party also gave an otherwise message about RJD among the voters of some sections, especially in Kusheshwarasthan seat, that ultimately helped the JD-U candidate to win the election by a margin of nearly 12000 votes”, he said.

    Some party insiders of RJD also said that Lalu’s recent statement of doing “immersion” of the Nitish Kumar government also backfired with the statement of Nitish Kumar that Lalu Prasad can do nothing else except get him (Nitish Kumar) killed. In the Tarapur assembly seat, the RJD filed the candidate from the OBC category to challenge the JD-U candidate. As an official count, 78966 votes were polled to the JD-U candidate against 75145 votes polled to RJD candidates.

    “Political arrogance of RJD leaders, who play the politics on caste equations, has been defeated by the people of Kusheshwarasthan and Tarapur in by-elections”, Jivesh Mishra – the minister of labour resource department said.

    After RJD’s defeat in by-elections, the Congress Party also lost its ground in both the assembly constituencies after it had involved new entrants like Kanhaiya Kumar and others in election rallies.

    “The lack of leadership in Bihar Pradesh Congress Party and its disassociation from RJD in by-elections have badly reduced the party on the ground. The most notable point that emerged out from this by-elections is that all loudmouth leaders like Kanhaiya Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav have been rejected by the voters. The voters want development; not only political denouncements,” remarked political observers of Patna. 

  • Minutes after Lalu’s return to Patna, son Tej Pratap sits on a dharna

    By PTI

    PATNA: RJD president Lalu Prasad’s elder son Tej Pratap Yadav on Sunday staged a sit-in outside his residence, minutes after he accused his detractors of preventing him from spending time with his father whom he had received at the airport.

    Yadav threw a fit outside the residence of his mother Rabri Devi when he was stopped from entering the 10, Circular Road, bungalow, where Prasad is putting up upon return to the city after three years, and dashed to his own house a few hundred metres away.

    After some time, he emerged, accompanied by supporters who carried flags of the “Chhatra Janshakti Parishad” he has floated, and sat on a dharna in front of the gate.

    “I am very unhappy. Jagadanand Singh (state RJD president) is an RSS agent who keeps humiliating me. And I have a word of caution for my younger brother Tejashwi as well,” the maverick leader told reporters.

    ALSO READ | ‘Kya hota hai gathbandhan?’ Home after three years, Lalu fires salvo at Congress

    “I often say he (Tejashwi) is like Arjun and I, like Lord Krishna, am committed to helping him get what is his due. But he must realise he is no more a kid breastfed by his mother. If the party continues to function in this fashion, he will never become the chief minister,” fumed Yadav.

    The BJP, which is the RJD’s principal rival in Bihar, latched on to the opportunity for fishing in troubled waters.

    In a statement, BJP OBC Morcha national general secretary and state spokesman Nikhil Anand linked Tej Pratap Yadav’s “humiliation” to his ugly marital dispute with wife Aishwarya, whose father Chandrika Roy is now with the JD(U) of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

    “The very family members who had supported Tej Pratap Yadav in humiliating Aishwarya have now turned their backs on him and treating him as if he is a lunatic. Tej Pratap is politically mature, but he has been sidelined in the party founded by his own father, despite being the elder son. He could never understand the conspiracy against himself,” said Anand.

  • Tej Pratap Yadav alleges Lalu being held captive in Delhi, Tejashwi dismisses claim

    By PTI

    PATNA: RJD president Lalu Prasad’s maverick elder son Tej Pratap Yadav has caused a flutter with the claim that his father was being held “captive” and prevented from returning to Bihar despite having been released from jail.

    Yadav, who is known for shooting from the hip, made the comment on Saturday when he said the captors of his father, who is convalescing in Delhi since release from Ranchi jail a few months ago, were “four or five people” he did not wish to name.

    Yadav, who is in his late 70s and suffers from multiple ailments, had been awarded sentences by a special CBI court in fodder scam cases.

    Since his release from jail on bail, he has been putting up at his Delhi residence, staying away from the daily humdrum of politics.

    Nonetheless, he has addressed RJD workers over video conferences on a couple of occasions.

    The BJP predictably latched on to Tej Pratap Yadav’s utterances, insisting that the elder sibling was hinting at Tejashwi, his younger brother and the heir apparent to Prasad.

    Party spokesmen Nikhil Anand and Arvind Kumar Singh came out with statements asserting that political differences notwithstanding they had “immense respect” for Prasad and demanding that Tejashwi come clean on the issue.

    Tejashwi, who incidentally returned from the national capital on Sunday morning, was mobbed by journalists seeking his take on yet another embarrassment thrown at him by his elder sibling.

    The confident 32-year-old dismissed the contention with disdain asserting that “to say Lalu is bandhak (in captivity) simply does not go with his personality. He is a man who has served as the chief minister of Bihar and the country’s railway minister. He was the one who had got L K Advani arrested”.

    Tejashwi’s comment was a reference to Yadav’s tenure as CM when he had famously got the BJP stalwart arrested at Samastipur, causing the Ayodhya Rath Yatra to stop.

    Notably, both brothers had made their debut together in the 2015 assembly polls.

    However, Tejashwi, known to be the favourite of his father, was installed as the deputy CM in the Nitish Kumar government while the elder brother had to be content with a cabinet berth.

    After Kumar parted ways with the RJD, Tejashwi became the leader of the opposition while the elder sibling alternated between throwing tantrums and swearing full support to the younger brother whom he frequently likens to Mahabharata character Arjuna while calling himself Krishna, the warrior prince’s charioteer-cum-counsel.

    The latest showdown came barely a month ago when, angered over the removal of a trusted aide from the post of the RJD students’ wing chief, Tej Pratap Yadav reacted by floating a parallel outfit.

    He also lashed out at state RJD chief Jagadanand Singh, seen as Tejashwi’s man, referring to him as ‘Hitler’.

    The mercurial leader’s outrage received thumbs down from the party supremo himself who lauded Singh for being a “disciplinarian” when he addressed RJD workers a few days later.

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  • Lalu being held hostage in Delhi despite bail, alleges son Tej Pratap Yadav

    By ANI

    PATNA: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tej Pratap Yadav on Saturday alleged that his father and veteran leader Lalu Prasad Yadav has been held “hostage” in New Delhi despite getting bail earlier this year.

    While speaking at an event here, Tej Pratap said: “Despite getting bail months ago, my father is still being held hostage in New Delhi.”

    He further alleged that there are some people in the party who are “dreaming” of becoming the chief of RJD.

    “I spoke to my father and asked him to stay with me in Patna and look after the organisation of the party. When my father used to live in Patna, the main gate of our residence used to be open and he used to meet the common people in the outhouse.”

    “My father is unwell. There are 4-5 people in the party who are dreaming to become RJD’s national president. Do not need to name them as it is known to everyone. He was released nearly a year ago from jail but is still being held hostage,” he added.

    The comments come in the backdrop of a strained relationship between Tej Pratap and his younger brother Tejashwi.

    Earlier in August, Tejashwi had asked Tej Pratap Yadav to maintain “discipline”.

    The strain between the two top leaders has been evident after RJD students’ wing state president Akash Yadav was removed from his post. Akash Yadav is believed to be a close aide of Tej Pratap Yadav.

  • Is RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav being held hostage? ‘Yes’, alleges son Tej Pratap

    By ANI

    PATNA/NEW DELHI: Has RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav being held hostage? Yes, this has been alleged by none other than Lalu’s elder son Tej Pratap Yadav.

    Tej Pratap Yadav on Saturday levelled this startling allegation while speaking at a workshop, organised by his newly formed the “Chhatra Janshakti Parishad” in Patna for promoting leadership qualities amongst the youths.

    As National President of Chhatra Janshakti Parishad, Tej Pratap Yadav on the record alleged that his father Lalu Prasad Yadav has been confined to Delhi by some 4-5 people, who dream of becoming the national president of RJD.

    The former health minister further alleged that everyone knows who are those 4-5 people, who have confined his father confined to Delhi. “Everyone knows who those people are, there is no use in taking names. It has been a long time since my father Lalu Yadav came out of jail. But my father has been kept confined in Delhi,” he bluntly alleged.

    He said that he had talked to his father asking him to come and live with him in Patna together. “When my father used to be here (Patna), the doors were kept open and he used to meet people in the outhouse. Now, some people have put ropes to public. Our father has been kept hostage in Delhi,” he allegedly said.

    Yadav’s allegation stirred the political circle of RJD and no leader of RJD agreed to speak anything on Tej Pratap Yadav’s statement.

    However, BJP spokesperson Dr Nikhil Anand has asked Tejashwi Yadav to come out with a clarification on the allegation levelled by Tej Pratap Yadav. “Actually,its a family matter of RJD , but we also want that Tejashwi Yadav should come out and clarify as how is Lalu Prasad ji and the allegation levelled by Tejpratap Yadav,” Dr Nikhil Anand said.

    JDU spokesperson Neeraj Kumar also said that the state government can act under rules if anyone lodges a complaint.

  • Tej Pratap Yadav gets a jolt as closest aide leaves him to join LJP(P) 

    Express News Service

    PATNA: It is rightly said that politics is quite a game with no permanent enemies, and no permanent friends, only permanent interest.

    Tej Pratap Yadav, the elder son of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, got a major jolt on Friday when Akash Yadav, Tej Pratap Yadav’s closest political aide, joined the LJP (Paras faction). Soon after joining the LJP(P), Akash Yadav was appointed as national president of the LJP(P) students wing.

    Earlier, Akash Yadav was removed unceremoniously from the post of state RJD students wing by state president Jagdanand Singh.

    Tej Pratap Yadav had revolted against state president Jagdanand Singh equating him working as Hitler after Akash Yadav was removed from the post without a notice served to him.

    Tej Pratap continued opposing the removal of Akash Yadav from his party. But instead of siding with Tej Prakash, Akash Yadav joined the LJP (Paras faction) on Friday in New Delhi.

    Union Minister and Hajipur MP Pashupati Kumar Paras welcomed Akash Yadav trusting in his ability to take the LJP’s students wing to a new height.

    Tej Pratap Yadav, sources said, felt dejected after he was informed about Akash Yadav’s joining the LJP (P).

    Akash had created ripples in the RJD when he had put up a poster in which he was seen with Tej Pratap Yadav giving no place for the picture of Tejashwi Yadav before he was removed from the post.