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The stories of political ups and downs and manipulations of Bihar have always been very interesting and exciting in the pages of Indian politics, in which many such unheard stories are buried which still surprise people. This is about the time when a new round of political equations was going on between Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) founder Ram Vilas Paswan, who is called the messiah of Dalit politics. There came a time in the corridors of power of Bihar when efforts were being made to hand over the command of the post of Chief Minister to Rabri Devi again or to form the government, but at the same time, Ram Vilas Paswan put a big condition in front of Lalu Prasad Yadav of having a ‘Muslim Chief Minister’, due to which the equations got completely complicated and Rabri Devi could not return to power at that time even if she wanted to. This is a page in the history of Bihar politics which had influenced the social and political direction of the state for a long time.
In the late nineties and early 2000s, the politics of Bihar revolved around caste equations and slogans of social justice, where both Lalu Prasad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan were considered the biggest advocates of backward people, Dalits and minorities. At that time, the political situation was such that when there was talk of removal of President’s rule or formation of a new government in the state, all kinds of speculations started being made regarding the position of the Chief Minister. Lalu Yadav wanted that the party should move forward under the leadership of Rabri Devi and the reins of the government should remain in her hands, so that the party could have sole control over both the organization and power. However, at the same time, amidst the ongoing turmoil of alliance and support with Janata Dal (United) and other parties, Ram Vilas Paswan threw a trump card which created a huge panic in the RJD camp and the distance between the two stalwarts started increasing.
According to experts in the political circles, when the power equations were being discussed, Ram Vilas Paswan, in a tough political move, placed a condition that if a new government has to be formed in the state and the weakest sections of the society and minorities have to be given their real rights, then a Muslim leader should be appointed to the post of Chief Minister. Paswan argued that this would send a very positive message to the state and the scope of secular forces would become stronger. But Lalu Prasad Yadav was not at all ready for this condition, because he did not want to take the risk of handing over the command of power outside his family or his highly trusted circle. Due to this ideological and political deadlock, the process of talks between the two leaders broke down and ultimately the dream of the return of the government under the leadership of Rabri Devi, the outline of which was being prepared at that time, remained unfulfilled.
The condition of ‘Muslim Chief Minister’ placed by Ram Vilas Paswan and Lalu Yadav’s refusal changed the entire outline of Bihar politics in the future. The sourness and disintegration that started in the equations of Dalit and Muslim vote bank after this incident, prepared the ground for the emergence of new political parties and alliances in the coming elections, the benefit of which gradually started going to other opposition parties. Political experts believe that if both the leaders had shown a little more flexible diplomacy at that time, the political history of Bihar would have been different. Even though both those great leaders are no more in this world today, the political bets and compromises played by them still remain the biggest topic of discussion among the old political analysts of Bihar, who teach how one condition in the corridors of power can change the future of the entire state.