Patna: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav expelled his elder son Tej Pratap Yadav from the party for six years on Sunday, citing his ‘irresponsible conduct’ and deviation from ‘family’s values and public decorum’.
This came a day after a purported post by Tej Pratap on Facebook, where he spoke of his long-standing relationship with Anushka Yadav, saying that they have been in love and in a relationship for the past 12 years. Tej Pratap later claimed that his Facebook account was hacked and the photos edited to defame him and his family.
Lalu Yadav posted that ignoring moral values in personal life weakens the party’s collective struggle for social justice, adding that the conduct of Tej Pratap was not in line with family values or traditions.
“Ignoring moral values in personal life weakens our collective struggle for social justice. The activities, public conduct and irresponsible behaviour of the eldest son are not in accordance with our family values and traditions. Therefore, due to the above circumstances, I am removing him from the party and family. From now on, he will not have any kind of role in the party, and the family. He is expelled from the party for 6 years,” Lalu Yadav wrote in a Hindi post.
“He is capable of differentiating between the good and bad and the merits and demerits of his personal life. Whoever will have relations with him should take a decision as per their own discretion. I have always been an advocate of public shame in public life. The obedient members of the family have adopted and followed this idea in public life. Thank you,” Lalu added.
Lalu Yadav’s younger son and Tej Prata’s younger brother, Tejashwi Yadav, the former deputy chief minister of Bihar, told the media that people ought to keep their political and personal lives separate.
“As far as I am concerned, I neither like nor tolerate all this. Personal life should be separate. He is the elder one, and has the right to take his own decisions. But Lalu ji has also made his thoughts clear. He did what he thought was right. I came to know about this only through the media,” Tejashwi said.
The purported post by Tej Pratap garnered a lot of attention on the social media platform. While many praised his courage, others were curious to know whether this relationship will now lead to marriage.
In a Hindi clarification shared shortly after the viral post, Tej Pratap wrote: “My social media platforms have been hacked and my photos are being edited inappropriately to harass and defame me and my family. I appeal to my well-wishers and followers to stay alert and not pay attention to any rumours”.
Political observers believe that this is an attempt by Lalu Yadav to thwart any effort by the BJP-JD(U) combine to use Tej Pratap’s post against the RJD during the upcoming Assembly elections in the state. Tej Pratap has plans to contest from the Mahua seat in the Vaishali district that he won in 2015.
