PATNA:

, RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s samdhi and party nominee from family bastion Saran, says son-in-law

Yadav filing a divorce petition against his daughter will not impact his poll prospects. Rai tells TOI’s Piyush Tripathi, Tej fooled the media with his April 1 announcement that he will campaign

Excerpts:

Lalu has represented Saran thrice. How high are the stakes for you considering Rabri Devi lost to BJP's Rajiv Pratap Rudy in 2014?

There isn’t any pressure on me. I have been an MLA from this region for six terms and my work speaks for me. It is they (NDA) who are under pressure that is why they are now using money to woo voters, but people will not be swayed by propaganda People, mostly youths, were misled by gimmicks of Narendra Modi in the last elections. They were swayed by false promises of 2 crore jobs, Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts of every person among others. But people have understood this time that these people are only betrayers.

Your son- in- law Tej Pratap Yadav had openly opposed your candidature and he had even said he would campaign against you. What is your reaction?

There was no never any doubt about my candidature. Tej Pratap played a prank on you people (media) by announcing on April 1 that he will campaign against me

Tej wanted Rabri to contest from Saran.

She (Rabri) never wanted to contest this time. She had said that after the last elections. She is now looking after the entire state this time.

Will your daughter’s marriage issues with Tej Pratap and him opposing your candidature affect your prospects?

These are family issues and we should talk about people’s issues during elections. Besides, problems are there in every family and they are sorted out eventually.

Are you hopeful that your daughter’s marriage issues will resolved?

Yes. The whole world rests on hope. At times, the worst of marriages work out and best of marriages fail. So, I am very hopeful that things will be sorted out soon.

Is Lalu being behind bars affecting RJD as well as your prospects?

It is true that Lalu Ji being behind bars is a major setback for us. Lalu ji is our tallest leader so it would have been great if he could campaign for the party. Unfortunately, he is behind bars because of a conspiracy. But people are also angry over this and they will vent their anger by pressing the button next to RJD’s lantern symbol on May 6.

What are the factors in your favour?

The foremost factor is my assembly constituency Parsa from where RJD has never lost. Besides, the party has its MLAs in five out of six assembly segments in Saran

seat. We are getting votes from all communities due to our new alliance partners, including supporters of Mukesh Sahni, Upendra Kushwaha and Jitan Ram Manjhi.

What are the challenges for you?

Challenges for us are only in terms of resources as the NDA has more resources and money- power but we are able to match it with mass support.

What is your take on your main rival Rajiv Pratap Rudy of BJP?

He is going to lose as he is facing high anti-incumbency. He has not visited Saran in the past five years and has not done any work as a large chunk of his MP-LAD fund was returned because very few projects were taken up.

And how is your personal relation with Rudy?

Although we are pitted against each other, his elder brother Sanjeev Pratap Singh is my friend and former schoolmate. So we share cordial relations but as the phrase goes, ‘kingship knows no kinship’.

What vision do you have for development in Saran?

Industries are the urgent need of this constituency as employment opportunities cannot be created without manufacturing and agro-based units. We should also focus on setting up good educational institutions to make youths qualified.