In a scathing attack on Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family family, Aishwarya Rai — estranged wife of Tej Pratap Yadav — on Monday dismissed the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) expulsion of Prasad’s elder son as nothing more than “pre-poll drama”, timed carefully ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly elections.
Rai, the granddaughter of former Bihar chief minister Daroga Prasad Rai, alleged that the family was attempting damage control after Tej Pratap’s now-deleted revelation of a 12-year relationship with a woman named Anushka Yadav triggered a political and personal storm.
“Will Lalu separate his son just by writing four lines on X?” she asked pointedly, suggesting that the public fallout was staged and temporary. “These people can never separate. Yesterday evening itself Rabri Devi must have gone to him wiping tears and said, ‘Stay calm for a few days, we will make everything right’.”
‘They hid the court’s domestic violence finding’
The Tej Pratap–Aishwarya Rai marriage, once celebrated as a political alliance between two powerful families, has been mired in controversy since its inception in 2018. Just five months into the marriage, Tej Pratap filed for divorce — a case that continues to be fought in court.
In her first public reaction since the controversy resurfaced, Rai alleged sustained physical and emotional abuse during her brief time in the Yadav household.
“I was beaten and my food was stopped – but where was Laluji? The court found them guilty of domestic violence, but with their influence they hid it,” she said, accusing the family of using their political clout to suppress the truth.
Rai also questioned the credibility of Lalu Prasad’s move to expel Tej Pratap from the party via a social media post, calling it a superficial response meant to manage public outrage, not family discord.
‘They’re only worried now because elections are near’
Two-time MLA Tej Pratap Yadav, 36, set off a political firestorm on Saturday when he claimed on social media that he had been in a long-term relationship while still married. The post was deleted soon after, but not before it caused significant embarrassment to the RJD.
Reacting to this, Lalu on Sunday posted a statement disowning his son and announcing his removal from the party — a move Aishwarya clearly believes was orchestrated for optics.
“When Tej Pratap accepted this relationship for 12 years, it is obvious everyone in the family knew,” she said. “They are not concerned about how many times their son got married. But now that this matter came out before elections, the drama of taking action is being staged.”
She also appeared to cast doubt on Tejashwi Yadav’s public distancing from the controversy. “He himself must have told the family to stay calm before everything is set right,” she said, hinting that even the party’s heir-apparent was complicit in the so-called cover-up.
Meanwhile, RJD MP Misa Bharti, who along with parents Lalu and Rabri Devi left for Kolkata on Monday to be with Tejashwi’s wife Rajshree during her pregnancy, responded briefly to Rai’s allegations, saying: “The matter is in court.”
(With inputs from ToI)
Rai, the granddaughter of former Bihar chief minister Daroga Prasad Rai, alleged that the family was attempting damage control after Tej Pratap’s now-deleted revelation of a 12-year relationship with a woman named Anushka Yadav triggered a political and personal storm.
“Will Lalu separate his son just by writing four lines on X?” she asked pointedly, suggesting that the public fallout was staged and temporary. “These people can never separate. Yesterday evening itself Rabri Devi must have gone to him wiping tears and said, ‘Stay calm for a few days, we will make everything right’.”
‘They hid the court’s domestic violence finding’
The Tej Pratap–Aishwarya Rai marriage, once celebrated as a political alliance between two powerful families, has been mired in controversy since its inception in 2018. Just five months into the marriage, Tej Pratap filed for divorce — a case that continues to be fought in court.
In her first public reaction since the controversy resurfaced, Rai alleged sustained physical and emotional abuse during her brief time in the Yadav household.
“I was beaten and my food was stopped – but where was Laluji? The court found them guilty of domestic violence, but with their influence they hid it,” she said, accusing the family of using their political clout to suppress the truth.
Rai also questioned the credibility of Lalu Prasad’s move to expel Tej Pratap from the party via a social media post, calling it a superficial response meant to manage public outrage, not family discord.
‘They’re only worried now because elections are near’
Two-time MLA Tej Pratap Yadav, 36, set off a political firestorm on Saturday when he claimed on social media that he had been in a long-term relationship while still married. The post was deleted soon after, but not before it caused significant embarrassment to the RJD.
Reacting to this, Lalu on Sunday posted a statement disowning his son and announcing his removal from the party — a move Aishwarya clearly believes was orchestrated for optics.
“When Tej Pratap accepted this relationship for 12 years, it is obvious everyone in the family knew,” she said. “They are not concerned about how many times their son got married. But now that this matter came out before elections, the drama of taking action is being staged.”
She also appeared to cast doubt on Tejashwi Yadav’s public distancing from the controversy. “He himself must have told the family to stay calm before everything is set right,” she said, hinting that even the party’s heir-apparent was complicit in the so-called cover-up.
Meanwhile, RJD MP Misa Bharti, who along with parents Lalu and Rabri Devi left for Kolkata on Monday to be with Tejashwi’s wife Rajshree during her pregnancy, responded briefly to Rai’s allegations, saying: “The matter is in court.”
(With inputs from ToI)
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