Lalu expels son Tej Pratap Yadav from RJD over lack of conformity to values

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Sunday expelled his son and former Bihar minister, Tej Pratap Yadav

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Sunday expelled his son and former Bihar minister, Tej Pratap Yadav, from the party for six years over irresponsible behaviour and failing to conform to probity and family values.

The move came a day after the former minister posted a woman’s pictures on social media, claiming he was in a relationship with her for 12 years.

Tej Pratap Yadav, 37, a Bihar assembly member, married Aishwariya Rai in 2018. Their divorce case is pending before a court. The former minister, known to be mercurial and for off-the-cuff statements, deleted the pictures he shared on X, claiming his account was hacked. “...pictures had been edited in a wrong manner to harass and defame me and my family...I caution my followers to remain alert and not get influenced by any rumours.”

The expulsion is seen as part of RJD’s attempt to counter criticism from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (United) ahead of the assembly polls due later this year.

In a post on X, the RJD chief said that disregard for moral values weakens the social justice struggle. “My elder son’s activities, public conduct, and irresponsible behaviour are not in conformity with our family’s values and culture. ...I distance my son from the party and my family. From now on, he would have no association with our party and family.”

Tej Pratap Yadav has courted controversies, including through his diatribes against state RJD chief Jagdanand Singh, a loyalist of the party chief and mentor of his brother, Tejashwi Yadav. He has expressed reservations over Tejashwi Yadav’s primacy in the party.