The Nitish Kumar government’s decision to evict RJD leader and former chief minister Rabri Devi from the official bungalow she has lived in for two decades has prompted estranged daughter Rohini Acharya to come out in strong defence of the family she disowned after the recent Bihar elections.

Rohini, who left her parents’ Patna home last week claiming she had been attacked with slippers, accused the newly formed NDA government of targeting Lalu Prasad in the aftermath of the RJD’s defeat in the Assembly elections.

“Sushasan Babu’s development model. Insulting Lalu Prasad Yadav, the messiah of crores, is the top priority,” Rohini posted on X.

“They may throw him out of the house, but how will you throw him out of the hearts of Bihar’s people? If not his health, at least respect Lalu Ji’s political stature,” Rohini added.

Singapore-based Rohini, who had donated a kidney to her father in 2022, had caused the family huge embarrassment by claiming that she was thrown out of her parents’ home for questioning the RJD’s poor performance in the Assembly polls and accusing Tejashwi and his close aides of humiliating her.

The new NDA government in Bihar, in which the BJP is the dominant ally, on Tuesday allotted House No. 39 on Harding Road in Patna to Rabri, the leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council. She has been asked to vacate the 10 Circular Road bungalow, which has served as the family’s political headquarters for around 20 years. Lalu’s estranged son, Tej Pratap Yadav, has also been served a notice to vacate the government bungalow he occupies as he is not a member of either Assembly chamber.

Rabri was allotted the 10 Circular Road bungalow in 2005 after she vacated the designated minister’s residence — 1 Anney Marg — following Nitish’s rise to power that year. The bungalow’s location, adjacent to the chief minister’s residence in Patna’s high security zone, has long given it political significance. Former chief minister and RJD patriarch Lalu used to live there, too.

The property has remained with the family since 2005, and chief minister Nitish has so far not pressured the Yadavs to vacate the house. However, many believe that the BJP’s strong performance in the polls and a shift in the state’s power dynamics have paved the way for the eviction order.

The RJD’s Bihar president, Magnilal Mandal, on Wednesday told reporters that Rabri would not vacate the 10 Circular Road bungalow.

“We will not vacate the bungalow, come what may,” Mandal told reporters, accusing the government of being driven by vendetta politics. “There is nothing but venom and hatred in their hearts for Lalu Prasad and his family. This is a political vendetta and nothing else. The chief minister has done this only to earn the trust of Narendra Modi,” Mandal said.

He alleged that the motive behind the “sudden decision” was to humiliate the Lalu family and hinted that RJD workers would launch a protest if government officials resorted to forcible eviction. None of the family members — Lalu, Rabri or Tejashwi — have so far spoken on the eviction order.