Prasad: his master’s voice

Chief minister Laloo Prasad Yadav has never been retiring about hogging the limelight. But last fortnight, as his political foes stepped up their campaign to highlight his Government’s failures in preparing for the assembly polls, Laloo slipped into the background.

Challenging his opponents instead was Ranjan Prasad Yadav, a teacher-turned-Janata Dal Rajya Sabha member, backroom operator and Laloo’s alter ego. Most Patna dailies printed his version of Laloo’s success story in social justice and development on the front pages, putting the backroom boy in the spotlight.

Ranjan Prasad, 45, was described by BJP spokesman Saryu Roy as Laloo’s “dalal” (broker). He runs the show for Laloo from his house in Patna, dealing all day with officials, politicians, ministers, university teachers and students. All day his house hums with well-wishers and favour-seekers. Ranjan Prasad barks out an order over the phone and tells the favour-seeker casually: “Go now. Your work will be done.”

He giggles when referred to as ‘super chief minister’ and maintains: “I am nothing but asipahi(soldier) of the party and the chief minister.” But he is obviously more than that. He has been Laloo’s friend, philosopher and guide since 1967 when Laloo entered university politics.

In turn, when Laloo became chief minister, Ranjan Prasad was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. And Laloo acknowledges his role openly, saying that Ranjan Prasad, as an MP and intellectual, gives him “constructive advice”, without interfering with the administration.

A senior Congress(I) leader, close to the former chief minister, Jagannath Mishra, privately agrees that Ranjan Prasad is the only person who has been working for Laloo honestly, while swallowing all the abuses.

In fact, it was Ranjan Prasad who, two years ago, tried to convince Laloo to reintroduce English as a compulsory subject to help the poor and backwards benefit from reservations – though Laloo later had to backtrack.

He was also behind Laloo’s move to reverse the previous Congress(I) government’s policy of time-bound promotion for university and college teachers, a change which resulted in there being more professors and readers in Bihar than in the entire country.

Ranjan Prasad has also been responsible for recruiting Laloo’s army of sycophants, resulting in a spurt of books, hailing Laloo as a saviour. The rewards were proportionate to the level of genuflections. Some of the particularly successful sycophants were made chairmen of various government organisations.

As Laloo prepares for the hustings, Ranjan Prasad has been rehearsing the line for sceptical voters: Laloo could not achieve all that he wanted to because he was lumbered with incompetent ministers and a passive bureaucracy.

“Akela chana bhand nahi phor sakta,” (a single nut can’t crack the pot) he explains. If this is the best the ‘super chief minister’ can come up with, he might not be doing his master much good.