Patna: In a significant setback for the Congress ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, senior party leader and six-time MLA Ashok Ram joined the Janata Dal (United) on Sunday. A prominent Dalit face in Bihar politics, Ashok had served as the working president of the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee and was once a minister in the state government.
Ashok formally took membership of the JDU at the party’s state headquarters in Patna. Acting national president Sanjay Kumar Jha inducted him into the party, in the presence of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Chaudhary and state president Umesh Kushwaha.
Addressing the media, Ashok criticised the current state of the Congress party, stating, “This is no longer the Congress of the Nehru-Rajiv era.” He said he had been marginalised during the last Lok Sabha elections, with no consultation or role, despite his decades-long contribution to the party. “I should have been asked at least once. That was an insult,” he added.
Ashok also blamed Lalu Prasad Yadav for systematically weakening the Congress in Bihar and hinted that more leaders were likely to exit the party in the coming days. Sources had earlier suggested that Ashok was dissatisfied with the functioning of the state leadership, particularly with Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru.
The development comes at a time when the Congress is preparing for Rahul Gandhi’s proposed padyatra across 18 districts in Bihar starting August 10. Ashok ’s departure, however, is likely to cast a shadow over the party’s campaign strategy and Dalit outreach in the state.
