Patna: Politics in Bihar has heated up once again after a controversial social media post by the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) targeting Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav. The post, shared from the official BJP Bihar handle, described Yadav as “missing” and made remarks about his educational background, drawing sharp reactions and intensifying the war of words between rival parties.
The BJP post sarcastically read like a missing-person notice, mentioning Tejashwi Yadav’s name and calling him a “9th grade dropout”. Soon after, leaders from the ruling Janata Dal (United) joined the attack. JDU member of the legislative council Neeraj Kumar launched a strong verbal assault, saying that those who are not serious about education often run away from school, and claiming that Tejashwi Yadav had now also “run away” from politics. According to Kumar, the people of Bihar had rejected Yadav politically, forcing him into absence.
Neeraj Kumar continued his criticism in a mocking tone, questioning where Tejashwi Yadav was and suggesting that even leaders within his own party appeared unaware of his whereabouts. He sarcastically asked which “planet” Yadav was on and said that the RJD leader himself had become a “planet” for Bihar. These remarks further sharpened the political atmosphere and brought personal attacks back into the centre of public debate.
The controversy has been fuelled by Tejashwi Yadav’s absence from public life following the Bihar assembly elections. Nearly 20 days after the defeat, he left for a trip to Europe on 4 December along with his wife and two children. During this period, he skipped a three-day assembly session and remained largely away from political activities. Before the elections, Tejashwi Yadav had been one of the most visible and confident leaders, even announcing dates for the election results and a proposed swearing-in ceremony, which ultimately did not happen.
The election results were a major setback for the RJD. The NDA returned to power with 202 seats, while the RJD was reduced to just 25 seats. The Mahagathbandhan also failed to perform strongly. After the defeat, Tejashwi Yadav was seen briefly in the assembly for two days and attended a few private events, but he remained absent from major political occasions, including the swearing-in ceremony at Gandhi Maidan in Patna, despite having received an invitation.
Tejashwi Yadav later offered a formal congratulation to the Nitish Kumar-led government on social media platform X, but his continued low public presence has led to discussions within the RJD and criticism from rival parties. As political attacks grow sharper, the episode highlights how Bihar’s post-election politics has quickly shifted from policy debates to personal and symbolic battles.
