RANCHI: Jabtak rahega samosey mein aloo, tab tak rahega Bihar mein Lalu.” (As long as samosas are made with potatoes, so long would Lalu reign in Bihar.)
That electoral tagline in Lalu Prasad Yadav’s heyday propelled him to the apogee of power in 1995. Aloo and Lalu at that point in time were powerfully intertwined.
Cut to 2019. Lalu’s RJD, which had had a magical existence since it was born in 1997, ended up scoring a duck in the recent Lok Sabha elections. It left Lalu devastated.
READ | Clean sweep for NDA in Bihar
Now incarcerated after his conviction in two fodder scam cases on September 2, 2015 and recouping from his heart and kidney ailments in the prison ward of the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences in Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi, Lalu has stopped having food, triggering panic in the hospital hierarchy.
Counsellors have been rushed in, heart and kidney specialists lined up. But Lalu had refused to eat.
“It’s the third day. His condition could deteriorate fast. He is already feeling unease due to scorching heat outside and no food, which has led to his blood sugar levels and blood pressure shooting up. Frequent power cuts and the small dimension of his room have complicated matters. His anxiety disorders have lead to sleeplessness, unease, worry and nervousness, but he won’t heed counsel,” said a worried Dr Umesh Prasad.
RJD leader Abhay Yadav, who met him on Sunday, came away with the impression that Lalu was ‘very ill’.
“He hasn’t slept as he is disturbed by the outcome,” he said.
Even daughter Misa Bharti lost the lone seat of Pataliputra that the family contested.