Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MLA Tej Pratap Yadav on Thursday staged a demonstration in front of a police station in Patna, accusing the inspector in-charge of having misbehaved with him over telephone upon being asked to lodge an FIR based on the complaint of a woman living in the area.
High drama was witnessed at Phulwari Sharif police station on the outskirts of the city, where the mercurial elder son of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad sat on a dharna, flanked by scores of supporters and declared, “I will write a letter to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar seeking the dismissal of the impertinent police official”.
The RJD leader told mediapersons, who had rushed to the spot upon hearing about his demonstration, that he had dialed the number of the inspector in-charge Mohammed Qaiser Alam earlier in the day from the RJD headquarters when he was approached by a woman who alleged that her sister was facing dowry harassment by in-laws.
After having remained in reclusion for quite some time following a petition he has filed seeking divorce from his wife of six months, Yadav has been back in action for the last few days holding a Janata Durbar at the party office in Birchand Patel Marg of the state capital, listening to complaints of the public and attempting on the spot resolutions, in a style reminiscent of his legendary father in his hey days.
“When I called the inspector, he misbehaved. He said he did not know who Tej Pratap Yadav was. He appears to be a swollen-headed fellow. A liquor bottle has also been spotted inside the police station despite Nitish Kumar government’s ban on liquor. Such police officials must be dismissed,” the former state minister alleged amid shouting of slogans by his supporters.
The inspector, who was approached by the media for comments, claimed he had never received any call from the MLA and that he was ready to lodge an FIR but could not do so until somebody came forward with a written complaint.
The woman, who said her name was Manju Lata, told reporters that she was drafting a complaint to be submitted with the police station but declined to answer queries about whether she had sought the RJD leader’s intervention.
Interestingly, Yadav’s maternal uncle Sadhu Yadav, who enjoyed tremendous clout when Rabri Devi was the Chief Minister but has been estranged from the family for long, also arrived at the spot. He said, “I am a resident of this locality. I did not know what is going on but heard that my nephew is staging a protest over some matter, hence I grew curious and came here.”
Sadhu Yadav is suspected by a section in the RJD of egging on Tej Pratap Yadav to embark on a collision course with younger brother Tejashwi Yadav, who has emerged as the party’s de facto leader in their father’s absence.
The impression gained strength on Wednesday when Sadhu Yadav told a local news channel the crisis in the RJD can be defused if there is a proper delegation of authority. One of the brothers can be the party chief while the other can become the Chief Minister upon the party gaining power.
Tejashwi, who is currently the Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, had been named the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate in Lalu’s presence last year.
