Who is he?
Lalu Prasad Yadav is a hugely popular and controversial Indian politician from the state of Bihar. He comes from a humble background, and belongs to the low-caste, Yadav. He served as Chief Minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 and while he gained prominence in the state, his tenure was mired by poor governance, lawlessness, and corruption. Yadav resigned the post due to charges of corruption and formed the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party. He later became the Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009 and was credited with turning the Indian Railways – a loss-ridden entity – into a profitable venture. He has since faced allegations of manipulating railway accounts.
Lalu Prasad Yadav. Source: Ramesh Lalwani’s flickr photostream, used under a creative commons license.
Why is he in the media?
Yadav was convicted on October 3, 2013, in a 17-year old “Fodder scam” case on corruption related to embezzlement of government funds meant for cattle fodder and medicines. He became the third legislator to be disqualified from the Parliament on the basis of a recent Supreme Court judgment mandating immediate disqualification of lawmakers convicted for any criminal offense. In an era of coalition politics, this has a significant impact on the 2014 national elections as Bihar accounts for 40 seats in the Lok Sabha.
What can we expect from him?
Yadav is expected to file an appeal against the decision on October 17, though his appeal will likely be rejected. While he has handed the reins of the RJD to his wife, he will continue to play a key role in party affairs and preside over major decisions. For Yadav, mounting a political comeback seems out of the question given the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on convicted lawmakers.
