Lalu is Still a Fighter, and Extremely Popular: Sankarshan Thakur

Lalu Prasad Yadav may be under a judicial cloud, but to the Bihar voter he is still a star.

Lalu Prasad Yadav during a ‘Bihar Bandh’ his party organised in July, 2015. (Photo: PTI)

Lalu Prasad Yadav can’t contest elections because of the Fodder Scam convictions, but he is still one of the most important players in Bihar politics. According to Sankarshan Thakur, senior journalist and author of Subaltern Saheb: The Making Bihar and Lalu Yadav, Lalu is still one of the most charismatic politicians in the country.

Lalu still commands the largest vote share in Bihar. Even in the 2014 General Elections when the BJP swept Bihar, Lalu had 19% of the vote.

In the upcoming elections, he is likely to be the star campaigner for the JD(U)-RJD-Congress alliance.