Tej Pratap’s close aide sacked amid poster war between Lalu's sons

tej pratap vs tejashwi yadav — Image Source : PTI (FILE)
Tej Pratap’s close aide sacked amid poster war between Lalu's sons

RJD's Bihar unit chief Jagadanand Singh has removed Tej Pratap’s close aide Akash Yadav as the state president of Chhatra RJD (students' wing). The removal comes amid reports of friction between Tej Pratap and Tejashwi -- the two sons of Lalu Prasad Yadav. Tejashwi, the youngest son of Lalu, happens to be the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly.

Akash, who is considered to be close to Tej Pratap, was replaced by Gagan Kumar. The decision was taken at a closed-door meeting with Tejashwi at the latter's residence in Patna on Wednesday, evoking an angry reaction from Tej Pratap.

Tej Pratap slammed Jagadanand Singh and stated that the decision was not in line with RJD’s constitution. "In consultation with advisors from outside, Jagadanand Singh forgot that the party is governed by the constitution. The constitution of RJD says that you cannot remove any office-bearer of the party without giving notice. What happened today (Wednesday) was against the constitution of the party," he tweeted.

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Responding to Tej Pratap's charge, Jagadanand said that he is answerable only to the national president of RJD and went on to ask "why would I be angry with Tej Pratap".

Jagadanand clarified that he has not removed the state president of Chhatra RJD and that the post was "vacant for a very long time". "I have now filled it," he said.

Notably, Tej Pratap had at a Chhatra RJD meeting called Jagadanand ‘Hitler’. Jagadanand since then did not turn up at the party office, hinting all is not well in the party.

Earlier, Tejashwi's photo was spotted missing from posters on Patna roads of RJD’s student wing meeting where Lalu's eldest son Tej Pratap was the chief guest. The posters had pictures of Lalu and his wife Rabri Devi. While Tej Pratap's photo was displayed prominently, Tejashwi didn't find a place. This triggered talks about a possible rift brewing within the Yadav family. The poster was reportedly designed at the behest of Akash Yadav.

The poster at Chhatra RJD’s meeting was seen as a reply to an earlier poster that had Tejashwi's photo along with Lalu and Rabri. Tej Pratap was missing from that poster.

Meanwhile, Tejashwi is said to be upset with Akash Yadav after his photo was not printed on the Chhatra RJD poster that featured Tej Pratap prominently.