Patna: In a major political development ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections 2025, Chanakya Prakash Ranjan, the son of JD(U) MP from Banka Giridhari Yadav, joined the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Friday, signalling growing discontent within Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s party.
Chanakya, an alumnus of the London School of Economics and Political Science, joined the RJD at the party’s headquarters in Patna in the presence of Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav. Sources indicate that he may be fielded as the RJD’s candidate from the Belhar Assembly seat.
He was joined by several prominent figures, including former JD(U) MP from Purnia Santosh Kushwaha, Rahul Sharma, and Ajay Kushwaha, who contested the previous election from Vaishali on an LJP ticket.
“These leaders have chosen the side of truth and change,” Tejashwi Yadav declared while welcoming the new entrants. “The BJP has completely hijacked Nitish Kumar’s JD(U). It is now being run by three and a half people. This time, the BJP will destroy the JD(U) itself.”
Tejashwi added that Chanakya’s “education, youth, and energy” would strengthen the RJD’s campaign, framing the defection as evidence of disillusionment among the JD(U)’s younger generation.
Rifts within JD(U) widen
The defection comes at a sensitive time for the JD(U), with Giridhari Yadav himself reportedly unhappy with the party leadership. Earlier, he had courted controversy by questioning the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list, alleging that the Election Commission of India had “imposed the SIR without understanding Bihar’s geography and social realities.”
The remarks prompted JD(U)’s national general secretary Afaq Ahmed to issue a show-cause notice to Yadav, demanding a written explanation. Party insiders suggest that relations between the MP and the leadership have since cooled, paving the way for his son’s move to the RJD.
The RJD has been actively courting leaders disenchanted with the JD(U), hoping to capitalise on Nitish Kumar’s weakening grip over his party amid the ongoing seat-sharing negotiations within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
