Former union minister Sharad Yadav on Sunday announced that he has merged his Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) with Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD, calling it the “first step in opposition unity”. With this, the two leaders - once seen as rivals - come back together after decades. “The merger of our party with the RJD is the first step towards opposition unity. It's imperative that the whole opposition gets united across India to defeat the BJP. As of now, unification is our priority, it'll be only after that we would think about who'll lead the united opposition,” Sharad Yadav was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Earlier this week, he had said that he had been working for long to bring together the political parties having similar ideologies. This was also an attempt to revive his erstwhile Janata Dal family, he said. "This step (merger) has been necessitated as an initiative of my regular efforts for bringing together the scattered Janata Dal parivar in view of the current political situation in the country," the 74-year-leader had said in a statement.
Amid the push over opposition unity and agenda for social justice, Sharad Yadav said that the Janata Dal - formed in the wake of 1975 national emergency - alone had got 143 seats in Lok Sabha in 1989.
Sharad Yadav and Lalu Prasad Yadav have faced each other in electoral battles during their decades-long careers. However, there have also been instances of the two leaders sharing a bond from the days of the Janata Dal, which later got fragmented in units.
Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is serving sentence in corruption cases, had quit the Janata Dal in 1997 to form his RJD amid mounting pressure over the fodder scam corruption case.
{{/usCountry}}Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is serving sentence in corruption cases, had quit the Janata Dal in 1997 to form his RJD amid mounting pressure over the fodder scam corruption case.
{{/usCountry}}In 2005, Nitish-Kumar-Sharad Yadav combine won the Bihar elections and the RJD was voted out of power. But the differences were eased over the last few years.
The opposition leaders have been trying to forge a front against the BJP ahead of the 2024 national elections. Tejashwi Yadav, Lalu Yadav's son, has been a vehement critic of the rival party.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)