PATNA: Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his younger son Tejaswi Yadav were sent a legal notice by a close friend of chief minister Nitish Kumar over personal attacks and “objectionable references” that the father-son duo had allegedly made against him at a recent rally in Bhagalpur.
Uday Kant Mishra, a well-known educationist who is currently a member of Bihar State Disaster Management Authority (BSDMA) and who sits on the board of a few other government organisations, shot off the legal notice through his lawyer on Thursday, asking Lalu and Tejaswi to apologise unconditionally within the next 15 days.
“I was deeply hurt by the personal attacks and objectionable references made against me without any basis at all at RJD’s public rally in Bhagalpur on September 10. I have therefore sought legal recourse,” said Mishra, who has been a friend of Nitish Kumar since their college days more than three decades ago.
Both Lalu and Tejaswi Yadav, who is currently the leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly, had referred to “relations” between Mishra and Nitish Kumar in the context of the Rs 1,200-crore Srijan scam. “What relation does he (Kumar) have with Mishra? Why was it that Nitish stayed in Mishra’s house whenever he came to Bhagalpur?” asked Lalu at the RJD rally organised to “expose the involvement” of the JD(U)-BJP government in the scam.
The legal notice says since Mishra is neither a criminal nor a convicted person, there is nothing wrong with the chief minister’s visit to his house. During the occasional visits to his house, Nitish Kumar seeks the blessings of Mishra’s old mother, says the notice.
“I have not received it yet,” said the RJD chief when asked about the legal notice and refused to speak anything more on the matter.
JD(U) leaders said Lalu and his two sons – Tejaswi and Tej Pratap Yadav – should immediately apologise for making “highly objectionable and undignified comments” against the chief minister and one of his close friends.
“Lalu and his sons have been talking to the chief minister and his friend in the context of the Srijan scam. If there is any basis behind their statements, they should approach CBI or the courts with evidence,” said JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar.