PATNA: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad is leaving nothing to chance to brighten the prospects of his daughter Rohini Acharya contesting Lok Sabha polls from the high-profile Saran constituency.
Saran will go to the polls in the fifth phase on May 20.
Lalu, who is arguably one of the country’s best political survivors battling fodder scam cases and lately his kidney ailment, is truly once again in his element as he is camping in Chhapra, the district headquarters, despite hot and humid weather conditions.
Lalu reached Chhapra after Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed an election meeting there in support of BJP candidate Rajiv Pratap Rudy on Monday. This is the fourth time since the announcement of the poll schedule that he is in Saran to seek votes for his daughter, who had donated one of her kidneys to save his life.
In Chhapra, Lalu is holding marathon meetings with his old party colleagues to fine-tune the strategy for the election, since the date of polling is getting closer. He also held meetings with RJD’s grassroot workers and panchayat representatives as they vowed to ensure Rohini's victory from the Saran Lok Sabha seat.
Rohini, who is making her debut in electoral politics, is a doctor by profession, as she calls herself both ‘Beti’ (daughter) as well as ‘Bahu’ (daughter-in-law) of Saran, which was once home ground for her father.
Lalu had got elected as a member of Lok Sabha from the Chhapra seat for the first time in 1977. He had won four times before his disqualification in 2013, when he was convicted in the fodder scam cases.
Lalu had won a Lok Sabha election last time from Saran in 2009 by defeating Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the BJP. Rohini, during her campaign, claims that Rudy has done nothing while she has proved to be an ideal daughter.
Even Rudy acknowledges the fact that it is not Rohini in the fray. The real political opponent is Lalu, who is fighting from behind the scenes, he says.
Rohini said she was aware of Bihar’s political developments.
“I have been closely following day-to-day political developments in Bihar and often responded to them on social media. I have learned the nuances of politics from my father, who is my political guru,” she said.