PATNA: In the wake of the debacle in Bihar's legislative polls last year, the Janata Dal (United) is now working towards bringing back senior politicians who had left the party a few years back.
After Upendra Kushwaha’s return to JD-U with the merger of his party-RLSP, the party is reportedly convincing veteran socialist leader and ex-national president of JD-U, Sharad Yadav, to return to the fold as well.
Speculations are rife in that Yadav has been requested through Upendra Kushwaha during his recent visit to Yadav's Delhi residence, as an emissary of CM Nitish Kumar to bury the hatchet and return to JD-U.
Currently, Sharad Yadav heads his own party, the Loktantrick Janata Dal, which he launched in 2018 after parting ways with the JD-U.
He was the national president of JD-U from its formation year in 2003 till 2016.
Yadav was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1974 from Jabalpur in a by-election in Madhya Pradesh and has since continued to actively participate in parliamentary politics from various Lok Sabha seats, including Madhepura in Bihar from 1991 to 2009.
His daughter, Subhashini Raj Rao, had contested the 2020 assembly elections on a Congress ticket from Bihariganj seat in Madhepura.
JD-U's think tank has formulated a policy to welcome back veterans as a measure to strengthen the party's position in the national sphere.
However, it is being said that Sharad Yadav has not yet agreed to return and has asked for some time. Prior to meeting Kushwaha, Yadav had also met RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav in Delhi.
Political experts opine that Sharad Yadav's return could bear significant results for the JD-U, at a time when former Haryana CM Om Prakash Chautala is said to be working towards establishing a third front in the country.
“In such a situation, if Sharad Yadav agrees to return to JD-U, his political experiences may prove very conducive to the JD-U to emerge a stronger party in national politics. Yadav is considered to be an influential leader to polarise the leaders of other like-minded parties for one platform,” a Patna based political expert said.
If Sharad Yadav returns to JD-U, it will help the party emerge as a strong national one ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. His return is also deemed important amid demands from JD-U leaders for projecting Nitish Kumar as the party’s PM face, a reliable party source added.