Call it political opportunism or sagacity, his moves, in effect, have not allowed the Bharatiya Janata Party to appoint its own chief minister to date, despite enjoying a near hegemonic status nationally and the best performance in recently held assembly polls where the saffron party bagged 89 seats, followed by the Janata Dal-United with 85.
Nitish thought that his stakes as chief minister were far greater than his stakes in protecting one of his party MLAs. He could not allow his rule-of-law train to be derailed by a small rock on the track. On the contrary, if he removed it to keep the train moving at a steady speed he would gain strong public admiration and sympathy that would help him take the masses along in carrying out other tasks. A fascinating excerpt from Arun Sinha's Nitish Kumar And The Rise Of Bihar.
Never a leader with a big base of his own, Sharad Yadav depended on state bigwigs like Lalu and Nitish to enter Parliament but enjoyed the aura and political weight which made him a strong presence at the high table of national politics in Delhi.
The mortal remains of the former Union minister were consigned to flames by his son Shantanu Bundela and daughter Subhasini in his ancestral village Ankhmau at around 5 pm.
The move by Sharad Yadav (74), who had been keeping low after battling health issues for months, is seen as an effort to rehabilitate his colleagues and other associates as his LJD could never become a serious force after its launch following his separation with Janata Dal-United leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh paid tributes to late Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, socialist leader Sharad Yadav, senior advocate Shanti Bhushan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Hiraben Modi at its annual general body meeting in Samalkha on Sunday.
The last rites will be performed by Sharad Yadav's son Shantanu Bundela, the late politician's nephew, Shailesh Yadav, informed.
A statement from the Fortis Memorial Research Institute said Yadav was brought to the emergency ward in an unconscious and unresponsive state.
Subhashini Yadav, a social worker, said she is taking the responsibility of carrying on the fight of the 'Mahagathbandhan' in Bihar, as her father Sharad Yadav has always supported it.
In a major embarrassment to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's development politics, his party colleague Janata Dal-United president Sharad Yadav has accused him of not coming out of caste politics.
'Sharad Yadav was deeply hurt by Nitish Kumar's decision, taken without consulting the senior party leaders at a time when opposition unity was to be strengthened against the BJP. He felt ignored and is likely to take a final stand soon.'
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and Janata Dal-United president Sharad Yadav were on Friday admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi after they complained of uneasiness.
As the Centre announced the inclusion of caste enumeration in the next census on Wednesday, opposition parties said it is a victory for their long-standing demand and sought time-bound implementation.
Mathura resident Tarun Gautam has alleged in the court that police threatened his family and framed his son, a B.Tech student, in false cases under the Gangsters Act, and Arms Act.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley, Congress veteran Karan Singh and Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav have been selected for the 'Outstanding Parliamentarian Award', it was officially announced on Wednesday.
Yadav is all set to approach the Election Commission of India to claim the election symbol of the party -- 'arrow'.
Our relations are very old. If she thinks whatever I had said has hurt her, I express my regret for that. I will also write a letter to her, Yadav said.
The Congress, out of power in Madhya Pradesh for nearly 15 years, has also expressed its willingness to align with like-minded parties to take on the BJP.
Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav on Wednesday shared the dais with Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on the inaugural day of SP's national convention in Lucknow, fuelling speculation about their joining hands.
Yadav had vocally expressed his disappointment over Nitish 'cheating with the mandate of the people of Bihar.'
Sharad Yadav is all set to be retained as the national president of the Janata Dal-United for the third term, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar told mediapersons in Patna on Monday.
After weaning away Biju Janata Dal from the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition, the Left parties are now eyeing another National Democratic Alliance ally with senior Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury on Sunday holding discussions with Janata Dal-United leader and NDA convenor Sharad Yadav.
He said Nitish betrayed people's mandate by breaking Grand Alliance.
During Emergency Indira Gandhi acquired absolute power. Lakhs of political opponents, students, activists were arrested.
A usually soft-spoken Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on Friday pulled up Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav when he sought to challenge her authority and responded angrily to her remarks.
Janata Dal - United national president and National Democratic Alliance convener Sharad Yadav on Saturday said he was of the opinion that there were no possibilities of mid-term Lok Sabha polls in the immediate future. "It is not right for me to comment on whatever he (Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav) has said, that only he can tell in detail...but according to my point of view, mid-term elections are nowhere visible as of now," Yadav said.
Several leaders aren't happy with the chief minister's decision to walk out of the Grand Alliance and join hands with the BJP.
Kushwaha described the meeting as a courtesy call.
Nitish Kumar's unanimous election to the top post at the party's National Executive meeting brought an end to the decade-old tenure of Sharad Yadav, who had ruled himself out for a fourth term.
Janata Dal-United president Sharad Yadav on Wednesday visited the native village of jailed criminal-turned-politician Anand Mohan Singh, a former MP serving life sentence in a murder case, to seek blessings of his mother for the Lok Sabha polls.
National Democratic Alliance Convener and Janata Dal-United President, Sharad Yadav termed Maoism as a "deep-rooted" problem which cannot be solved merely by arms.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar denied any differences with Janata Dal-United president Sharad Yadav and said he would meet him when he would go to Delhi for a meeting with Prime Minister Singh as a member on the Core Group seeking a consensus on Women's Reservation Bill.
With the rift between the two National Democratic Alliance allies widening, Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Nitin Gadkari and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi today met Janata Dal-United President Sharad Yadav, who said efforts are being made to rectify the situation that has taken a "bad shape".
While Yadav polled 413 votes, the incumbent and rival George Fernandes fetched just 25 votes.
The Janata Dal (United) has clarified that its alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party would remain intact despite recent bickerings, saying it was a "necessity" for the two parties to remain together.
However, Yadav clarified later that his comment was meant to be a joke.
Yadav called Raje fat and asked people to give her rest.
As far as the party is concerned, it has already taken its decision. The decision was not mine alone and it was taken with the consent of the party. If he keeps a different opinion, then he is free to do so," Nitish told reporters after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Terming the austerity drive launched by the Congress-led government as "hypocrisy", Janata Dal (United) National President Sharad Yadav on Saturday said if the Congress was serious about the issue, it should bring a bill to this effect in the Parliament.
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