Tej Pratap Yadav (born 16 April 1988) is the elder son of former Bihar Chief Ministers Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi. He hails from a prominent political family in Bihar. Tej Pratap completed his schooling and passed the Intermediate (12th) exam in 2010. He entered active politics as a young leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Lalu Prasad’s party, joining a new generation of RJD politicians alongside his siblings.
Entry into Politics and Ministerial Roles
Tej Pratap was first elected to the Bihar Legislative Assembly in 2015. In that year’s assembly elections, he won the Mahua constituency (Vaishali district) as an RJD candidate. Shortly after, when the Grand Alliance (RJD-JD(U)-Congress) government was formed under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Tej Pratap was appointed a state cabinet minister. From November 2015 to July 2017 he served as Bihar’s Health Minister. In December 2015 he was also given charge of the Environment, Forest and Climate Change portfolio. These roles made him one of the youngest cabinet ministers in Bihar. His tenure was noted for several unorthodox actions (for example, he once brought a cow into his ministerial bungalow for “positive energy” and consulted astrologers on decisions).
After the 2017 break-up of the Grand Alliance, Tej Pratap remained active in politics. In the 2020 Bihar elections he shifted constituency: he contested and won the Hasanpur seat (Samastipur district). That same year, with the RJD again joining a coalition government (led by Nitish Kumar), he became State Environment Minister in November 2020. Throughout this period, he also led or founded youth and community organizations linked to the RJD (discussed below).
Marriage and Personal Controversies
In May 2018, Tej Pratap married Aishwarya Rai (daughter of RJD leader Chandrika Rai and granddaughter of former Bihar CM Daroga Prasad Rai) in a high-profile ceremony in Patna. Aishwarya Rai (not the Bollywood actress) was an MBA graduate from Amity University and hailed from another RJD family. However, the marriage quickly soured. Within six months Tej Pratap filed for divorce in a Patna court. The divorce proceedings attracted wide publicity. Aishwarya later publicly accused Tej Pratap of long-term domestic abuse. In media interviews she said she had been “beaten and [her] food was stopped” during the marriage, and that a family court found evidence of domestic violence by Tej Pratap and his family (though she added that their influence kept this from public scrutiny). The couple’s divorce case remains pending in Patna (as of mid-2025).
In parallel, Tej Pratap hinted at a long-running relationship with another woman. On 24 May 2025, he posted on social media that he had been in a 12‑year relationship with a woman named Anushka Yadav. He later deleted the post and claimed his account was hacked. Local reports and viral photos suggest Tej Pratap may have been married to Anushka Yadav even before his marriage to Aishwarya Rai, but these details remain contested. In 2022, amid divorce proceedings, Tej Pratap threatened to release video evidence of alleged abuse by Aishwarya’s side of the family. These personal controversies frequently spilled into the public domain, causing friction within the RJD family and generating media attention.
Role within RJD and Political Activities
Within the RJD, Tej Pratap was long viewed as a junior leader under the shadow of his younger brother Tejashwi Yadav (Lalu’s political heir). He served on party bodies but never held a top leadership role in RJD. He was known as a sometimes outspoken and controversial figure. Over the years he launched several organizations, often under RJD symbolism, to build his political profile. For example, in 2017 he founded the Dharm Nirpeksha Sevak Sangh (DSS) as a youth group to “counter the RSS” and emphasise secular values. In April 2019 he announced the Lalu-Rabri Morcha (named after his parents) to express his grievances with party leadership – he insisted this was not a separate party, but it was seen by observers as a sign of internal rift. He also floated student and youth fronts, such as the Chhatra Janshakti Parishad (CJP) in 2021, aimed at highlighting issues like unemployment and education. On multiple occasions Tej Pratap tried to mobilize support within the Yadav community – launching outfits like “Tej Sena” and “Yaduvanshi Sena” in 2019 to appeal to Yadav voters. Each time he asserted these bodies were aligned with the RJD, not breakaway parties.
Despite these efforts, Tejashwi’s rise to the top of RJD left Tej Pratap with limited power. By the late 2010s he was increasingly seen as frustrated at being sidelined. Insiders say he often clashed with party colleagues or skipped major RJD events, and at times publicly criticized Tejashwi or other leaders. For instance, in October 2022 he openly called senior RJD leader Shyam Rajak an “RSS agent” over a seating dispute at a party meeting. In January 2025 he stated (without authorization) that the state’s NDA government “would be brought down soon” and implied Tejashwi would be the next CM. In March 2025 a video of him ordering a bodyguard to dance at Holi celebrations went viral; the incident was widely criticized and the guard was later removed from his detail. These episodes contributed to a reputation as an “erratic” or troublesome figure within the party.
Expulsion from RJD: Decision and Justification
On 25 May 2025, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav announced on social media that Tej Pratap Yadav had been expelled from the party for six years and disowned by his family. Lalu’s statement (posted on X/Twitter) cited Tej Pratap’s “irresponsible conduct” and “disregard for moral values” in personal life as the reason. He warned that ignoring moral values “weakens our collective struggle for social justice” and said Tej Pratap’s “activities, public conduct and irresponsible behavior are not in accordance with our family values and traditions”. Lalu declared that Tej Pratap would “have no role of any kind in the party and family” for six years. These words echoed Lalu’s original post: “From now on, he will not have any role in the party or family. He has been expelled from the party for six years,” he wrote. No separate official party press release has been issued; the expulsion was communicated through Lalu’s announcement and reported by media.
The timing and trigger of the expulsion were widely noted. It followed Tej Pratap’s deleted Facebook post (of 24 May) announcing a long-term romantic relationship. All major news outlets report that this revelation – in effect admitting he had married another woman – caused an outcry in the RJD and prompted Lalu’s decision. Lalu’s statement did not mention Aishwarya by name, but observers saw a double standard, given he had not previously reacted when Aishwarya accused the family of abuse. Opposition spokespeople from the JD(U) and BJP pointed out this discrepancy at the time. Nevertheless, party insiders say the decision had been under consideration for some time because Tej Pratap’s public behaviour was already seen as damaging to RJD’s image.
Reactions and Aftermath
Tej Pratap’s expulsion immediately drew reactions from across the political spectrum. Within RJD, younger son Tejashwi Yadav (the current party leader) publicly backed Lalu’s move, saying personal and public life are separate and that his brother, now “an adult,” could live his personal life freely. Rabri Devi, Tej Pratap’s mother, reportedly comforted him privately after the announcement, but made no public comment. Among political rivals, BJP leaders quipped that “Tej Pratap paid the price for telling the truth,” while JD(U) spokespersons questioned why Lalu had not taken similar action when abuse was alleged against the family.
Tej Pratap’s estranged wife Aishwarya Rai (Rai) reacted sharply the next day. In media interviews she called the expulsion a “pre-poll drama” and cover-up. She alleged the family knew about Tej Pratap’s affair long ago and said, “Why was my life ruined? Why was I beaten? Now they have suddenly had a social awakening”. Aishwarya reiterated that she was subjected to abuse during the marriage and accused the family of shielding Tej Pratap until now. RJD MP Misa Bharti (Tej Pratap’s sister) responded to Aishwarya by saying “the matter is in court,” but otherwise the party largely refrained from further public debate.
New Party Speculation and Political Implications
The expulsion came just months before the Bihar Assembly elections scheduled for late 2025. Political analysts immediately speculated on Tej Pratap’s next moves. Some noted that he has previously floated organizations of his own and could either contest elections independently or start a new party. For example, India Today reported that “some analysts believe that Tej Pratap can form a new party or ally with some other party”. Observers recall that Tej Pratap once launched the Lalu-Rabri Morcha (2019) and student and youth fronts as alternatives when he felt sidelined. However, no formal announcement of a new party has been made by Tej Pratap as of mid-2025.
If Tej Pratap were to contest as an independent or join another alliance, it could have local electoral impact. Some political insiders suggest that RJD might even refrain from fielding a candidate against him in a seat he chooses, to avoid splitting the Yadav vote. However, BJP and JD(U) strategists believe it is unlikely for Tej Pratap to join them, given his past secular stance and controversies. The most immediate implication is that the RJD, led by Tejashwi Yadav, has removed a potential liability and cleared the stage for a unified campaign. Lalu’s public emphasis on “family values” is widely seen as an attempt to take a moral high ground before the election.
Overall, the ouster of Tej Pratap Yadav has shaken Bihar’s political landscape. It resolved a familial feud but raised new questions about RJD’s internal unity. For Bihar’s upcoming polls, it underscores the dominance of the Yadav family’s younger generation (Tejashwi and others) while highlighting the costs of intra-party dissent. As one RJD leader remarked at the time, Tej Pratap “may not have a constituency now, but he can embarrass the party and family by joining [another camp] – our opponents can use him to rile us”. The situation remains fluid: any formal move by Tej Pratap (such as launching a party or alliance) will have to be watched closely in the context of Bihar’s complex caste and coalition arithmetic.
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