Patna: Speculation over Tej Pratap Yadav’s political future intensified on Wednesday after the former Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) member met Bihar’s deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha, a senior figure in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in what appeared to be a cordial and informal exchange.
A video of the meeting, which has since gone viral on social media, shows the two leaders interacting warmly and seemingly exchanging personal contact details. Tej Pratap Yadav was also seen extending an invitation to Sinha for a Makar Sankranti gathering later this month, a gesture that has been widely interpreted as politically significant.
The meeting comes at a sensitive moment for Yadav, who was recently expelled from both the RJD and his family by his father, party supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav. Since then, he has been seen working to consolidate his own political base, amid signs of distancing from his brother and the leader of the opposition, Tejashwi Yadav.
Political observers note that the renewed visibility of Tej Pratap Yadav alongside BJP leaders has revived talk of him seeking proximity to the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA). While no formal political shift has been announced, the optics of the meeting have added momentum to such speculation.
Yadav is also preparing to host a traditional chura-dahi feast on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a long-established ritual in Bihar’s political culture. The event, historically hosted by Lalu Prasad Yadav and attended by leaders across party lines, is seen as both a social gesture and a platform for political signalling.
Tej Pratap Yadav has maintained that the upcoming feast is a purely cultural and social event, rooted in tradition rather than politics. Invitations, he said, are being extended widely, and the gathering is open to people from across Bihar.
However, the growing distance between Tej Pratap and Tejashwi Yadav, combined with his increasing engagement with BJP and NDA figures, has led many to view the Sankranti gathering as a possible prelude to new political equations in the state.
As Bihar’s political landscape continues to shift in the aftermath of recent electoral setbacks, the coming weeks may offer clearer indications of where Tej Pratap Yadav intends to position himself.
