Not the first time

There was a murmur in political circles when RJD worker Sanoj Yadav alleged that he had been beaten up by Lalu's eldest son Tej Pratap Yadav on the day the RJD chief hosted his iftar.

Sanoj had gone to 10 Circular Road and according to RJD sources Lalu and family were upset over the statements he made in a local TV channel's discussions. "Sanoj is no angel," remarked a senior RJD leader. "A few days ago, he was hurling abuses at RJD state chief Ram Chandra Purbey. In 10 Circular Road he was standing next to the wrong brother; Tej Pratap is known to be the short-tempered one. I recall Tej Pratap once slapped another RJD worker who had stepped on his shoes due to the jostling of the crowd." RJD leaders are, however, worried over Tej's temper and fear its effect on party workers' morale. BJP leaders point out that perhaps pressure of the income-tax department and the dip in relationship with the JDU have left the RJD chief and his family short-tempered.

Railway connection

Recently when BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi revealed about an apartment in the name of Lalu Prasad's late mother located on the western fringe of Patna, in which the senior BJP leader alleged that Rabri Devi owns 18 flats, there was a rush among media persons to reach the complex. One of them was amused when he saw the visitors' register of the apartment complex bearing the stamp of the ECR (Eastern Central Railway). The scribe asked the watchmen how they managed to get the ECR's stationery. The poor security guards, of course, had no answer.

Of historic blunders

Ever since Lalu uttered his now famous words about Nitish Kumar making a "historic blunder" by supporting the NDA's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind, JDU leaders have been livid. "I do not know if Nitish ji has made a historic blunder, but I do know the RJD will be committing a historic blunder if they want to quit the Grand Alliance," said a senior JDU leader, hinting that enough was enough. The RJD, however, appears in no mood to commit any historic blunder despite the sharp words. "Both parties are eyeball to eyeball, hoping the other will blink," a senior JDU leader said.

Smile for son please

LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan's iftar was attended by most of the prominent BJP leaders - Union minister Ram Kripal Yadav, Sushil Kumar Modi, Nand Kishore Yadav and several others. Most of them had other engagements and wanted to leave after the party was over. But Paswan kept on requesting them to stay on. Later they learnt that Paswan's son and MP Chirag Paswan had got stuck in a road jam and was reaching the venue late. "Paswanji badly wanted to have a photo session with us along with Chirag and there was no other alternative but to oblige," confided a senior BJP leader. They waited for half-an-hour before Chirag arrived and the photo session happened.