Lalu set to become RJD chief again

Prasad, who turned 78 recently, will likely be the only candidate who will file nomination on June 23 and thus his election on July 5 will merely be a formality

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and former railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav seems set to become the party’s national president for another on June 23, party insiders said on Saturday. It will be Lalu’s 13th term as party chief.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav leaves for a heart ailment treatment in Patna in this file photo. (PTI)

RJD is holding party polls of its national council and state executive. Polling will be on July 5.

Prasad, who turned 78 recently, will likely be the only candidate who will file nomination on June 23 and thus his election will merely be a formality. Lalu has been the RJD chief for 28 years ever since the party was formed in 1997 after split in the old Janata Dal pariwar. He has held party posts for tenures as three years, etc.

“There is no doubt that RJD chief Lalu Prasad would be the next party president for another term. He is the natural choice and would continue to guide the party,” said a senior RJD leader, seeking anonymity.

Incidentally, there were speculations that Prasad’s younger son and leader of the opposition, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, might be elevated to the top post but now the picture has become clear that there is no such plan of the party to make the 35 year old Yadav scion the head of the party as of now.

Chittaranjan Gagan, the assistant national election officer of RJD for the ongoing organisational polls, said that the nomination for the national president’s post would be held on June 23 before national election officer Ram Chandra Purbe.

The scrutiny and last date of withdrawal of the papers is on June 24. The election to the post of national president would be held on July 5 during the national council meeting of the party in Patna and the name of the new incumbent to the post would be announced, Gagan said.

Besides Lalu and Tejashwi, other prominent leaders are also in contention for various party responsibilities. Speculations are rife that former state president of the RJD Jagdanand Singh could be also given a key post in the national council as national vice-president . Right now, there are four national vice-presidents in the party, including former chief minister Rabri Devi, former Asembly Speaker Uday Narayan Choudhary, former MP Mehboob Ali Kaiser and former MP Shivanand Tiwary.

However, it is still not clear whether Singh, who is said to be sulking after his younger son Ajit Kumar Singh lost the Ramgarh bypolls in November last year, would take a role in the apex body. Singh, who was conspicuous by his absence at the state council meeting on June 19, could not be reached for comments.