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In the last few years, there has been a huge change in the power equations and functioning of political parties in the politics of Bihar, which has brought to the surface the factionalism within the regional parties. Within the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), ever since party supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav’s younger son and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav has taken charge as the ‘power centre’ and has taken all the major decisions of the organization in his hands, the Legislative Council (MLC) elections have become a very difficult and complicated challenge for the party. When the era of young leadership comes within any political party, it is considered natural to have an ideological and strategic conflict between the old style leaders and the new working style, and in RJD too, during this short span of last four years, at least three big and serious political controversies have come to the fore regarding the ticket distribution and management of MLC elections. These controversies have not only raised question marks on the internal discipline of the party, but have also shown how the tussle between old and loyal workers and the new leadership over organizational decisions within the party is increasing. Tejashwi Yadav’s leadership skills to deal with these challenges and keep the party united are going to prove to be extremely important in the upcoming assembly elections, as the elections to the upper house like the Legislative Council test the party’s ideological hold and economic-political management.
Growing organizational conflict between young leadership and old political style
In a traditional party like RJD, which has been running its politics on the basis of social justice and M-Y (Muslim-Yadav) equation for decades, suddenly implementing a corporate style or a working style with highly selective decisions is not an easy task. After Tejashwi Yadav became the main ‘power centre’, the message was sent within the party that now the allotment of tickets and appointments to organizational posts will be done completely on the basis of fairness and hard work on the ground, but in ground reality many times the opposite results were seen. When old and veteran leaders were ignored and priority was given to new faces or those who were considered close to the youth leadership, it did not take long for the smoldering flame of dissatisfaction to come out within the party. The blunder over ticket distribution in MLC elections, which are indirectly contested by elected representatives of local bodies or assemblies and also require huge resources, has brought RJD’s internal affairs into the media spotlight. A section of senior party leaders increasingly felt that their experiences and suggestions were being completely ignored while taking decisions, leading to a mental distance within the organization and a decline in mutual trust.
Inside story of three major controversies related to MLC elections within four years
If we take a deep look at the political journey of the last four years, at least three such major controversies arose within the RJD during the MLC elections which tarnished the party’s reputation and put the top leadership in an uncomfortable position. The first controversy was over allegations of completely ignoring caste and regional balance during ticket distribution, where many old party workers openly raised the flag of rebellion against the high command. The second controversy was related to cross-voting during the elections and internal conspiracy against the official candidates of the party, in which it came to light that some forces within the party were conspiring internally to defeat their own candidate. And the third and most recent controversy came to light when some names came forward regarding the selection of tickets for the Legislative Council elections on which the opposition parties made serious allegations of nepotism and use of money power, which dented the secular and social justice image of the party. In all these three cases, Tejashwi Yadav himself had to come forward and do damage control and convince many angry leaders, but these controversies proved that after taking charge of the party, there are still many major flaws in the election management which are very important to be removed.
A big test of organizational unity and discipline for RJD before the upcoming elections.
Even though these Legislative Council elections are not fought directly among the general public, their impact is very deep on the political corridors and administrative system of the entire state, because these houses are counted among the most intellectual and experienced forums of the state. If there are repeated disputes over ticket distribution within the party and there remains a lack of coordination with senior leaders, it will have a direct impact on the morale of the booth level workers. To win the upcoming big electoral battle in Bihar politics, mere young faces and crowds at rallies are not enough, but it requires a strong, disciplined and united organizational machinery that can work with precise strategy on every front. The biggest and main challenge before Tejashwi Yadav at this time is to create a better harmony between the old stalwarts of the party and the youth wing so that such controversies do not recur in future. If they succeed in resolving these internal contradictions in time, RJD can emerge as a strong and aggressive alternative, otherwise this type of infighting can break the big dreams of the party midway.