Pricey readers,
Politics is a recreation of hard-nosed calculations. Then again, love—pyar, preethi, premam, kaadhal, or no matter you need to name it—has by no means actually bothered with practicalities. So what occurs when the messy impulsiveness of affection collides with the chilly pragmatism of politics?
We obtained a glimpse final week, because of Tej Pratap Yadav.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief’s eldest son—higher identified to followers and journalists as Teju—has all the time been the extra vibrant character in Lalu Prasad’s political theatre. A former Minister within the Mahagathbandhan authorities, Tej Pratap lately set off a storm after a Fb submit (now deleted) claimed that he had been in a 12-year relationship with one Anushka Yadav. The submit included her photograph and, predictably, went viral.
Tej Pratap remains to be technically married to Aishwarya Rai, the granddaughter of former Bihar Chief Minister Daroga Prasad Rai and daughter of six-time MLA and ex-Minister Chandrika Rai. Teju married Aishwarya in Could 2018 in a lavish ceremony in Patna, the sort that blends dynastic pleasure with political math. The union was much less about romance, extra about reinforcing old-school ties between Bihar’s heavyweight households—a classic Lalu transfer, merging parivar with politics.
The wedding has reportedly been rocky, the matter is in courtroom, and a divorce is pending. However the brand new revelation of an outdated relationship despatched Bihar’s political circles right into a tizzy. Opposition events questioned the Yadav household’s “ethical standing” and accused them of treating girls as pawns. Tej Pratap, attempting to douse the fireplace, claimed that his social media accounts had been hacked and the photographs manipulated to “defame” him and his household. However the fireplace was already burning.
Then got here essentially the most dramatic twist: Lalu Prasad himself took to social media to announce his son’s expulsion from the social gathering—for six years, no much less—on the grounds that his actions went towards the household’s values and traditions. “Ignoring ethical values in private life weakens our collective battle for social justice,” Lalu declared. “Any further, he can have no function within the social gathering or household.”
However Aishwarya didn’t appear to purchase it. In a sharply worded response, she requested: “The place was this dedication to social justice once I was assaulted and pushed out of the home? Why did nobody intervene then, when this so-called 12-year-old affair was already identified to the household?”
It’s not the primary time Tej Pratap has threatened to derail the RJD’s plans. In 2019, he floated the Lalu-Rabri Morcha social gathering to mark his rise up throughout a household management tussle. By 2020, he was again within the fold, singing paeans to youthful brother Tejashwi with the marketing campaign slogan “Tej Raftar, Tejashwi Sarkar” (Excessive Velocity, Tejashwi Authorities)—borrowed from an area singer named Pramod Premi Yadav. Teju additionally earned media consideration for his antics: pouring water on a Shivalinga, strolling the streets as a blogger, and taking part in the flute in Krishna’s garb.
Now, it’s one other function: the prodigal son, exiled for love.
After all, Tej Pratap is much from the primary politician whose love life has turn into political lightning. I’m reminded of Chander Mohan, the son of Haryana veteran Bhajan Lal, who disappeared in 2008, solely to reappear claiming he had married senior lawyer Anuradha Bali after each had transformed to Islam. He turned Chand Mohammed; she, Fiza. The scandal price him his submit as Deputy Chief Minister. The love story unravelled in about 40 days. Fiza was later discovered useless in her residence in 2012.
Not each love story has had such a grim ending. The Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi saga and Akhilesh Yadav’s marriage to Dimple regardless of Mulayam’s early disapproval are happily-ever-afters. The interfaith weddings of BJP leaders like Sushil Modi (who married Jessie George, a Christian from Mumbai) and Shahnawaz Hussain (who wed Renu Sharma) inform of affection outlasting opposition. And love triumphing over social gathering ideology.
Sushil Modi famously met Jessie on a practice. Prime RSS leaders Nanaji Deshmukh and Bhaurao Deoras have been in attendance. Even Atal Bihari Vajpayee dropped in and reportedly inspired Sushil to maneuver from the ABVP to the BJP.
Then there may be Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Seema—three ceremonies (courtroom, nikah, and Hindu rites) adopted their Allahabad College romance. Manish Tewari of the Congress married Nazneen Shifa, a Parsi. The social gathering’s scholar wing, the Nationwide College students’ Union of India, was their matchmaker. Dinesh Gundu Rao, a Brahmin from Karnataka, married Tabassum, a Muslim lady he met in school.
Some unions fray over time. Omar Abdullah and Payal Nath’s marriage resulted in a protracted authorized battle, with the Delhi Excessive Court docket in 2023 refusing to grant a divorce. Sachin Pilot and Sara Abdullah (Omar’s sister) married in 2004; they reportedly separated almost twenty years later, in line with Pilot’s 2023 election affidavit.
And who can overlook the 2015 buzz round senior Congress chief Digvijaya Singh and TV anchor Amrita Rai? After intimate images went viral, Singh publicly acknowledged the connection. “I’ve no hesitation in accepting it,” he stated. Rai confirmed she had filed for divorce from her earlier husband. There was trolling, however the couple stayed collectively, Rai even becoming a member of Singh on his 2017-18 Narmada Yatra.
Romance in politics comes with its personal manifesto: a mixture of daring declarations, social gathering self-discipline, courtroom drama, and a few very public heartbreak.
Which brings us again to Tej Pratap. Will love triumph? Will he return to the RJD fold? Or will the following twist on this pyar-parivar-politics triangle show closing?
We’ll maintain watching. Whilst you inform us what you consider our lovelorn legislators.
Till the following one,
Anand Mishra | Political Editor, Frontline
We hope you’ve been having fun with our newsletters that includes a choice of articles that we imagine shall be of curiosity to a cross-section of our readers. Inform us in case you like what you learn. And likewise, what you don’t like! Mail us at frontline@thehindu.co.in
