Saturday, February 5 2005 17:00 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) chief Laloo Prasad has been successful in keeping his flock together to rule the State for 15 years, but appears to have failed to keep his own house in order.

The infighting in the family of the raja of Bihar has come to the fore at a time when the State Assembly polls are under way and RJD is facing the daunting challenge thrown up by its chief opposition - the NDA (National Democratic Alliance).

After Laloo's 'salas' (brothers-in-law) it is now the turn of a 'sarhaj' (wife of a brother-in-law) to jump into the electoral fray as an independent in her maiden bid to make it to the Assembly as denial of a ticket by their 'jijaji' (Laloo) seems to have caused furore among the family members.

Laloo's 'sarhaj' - Indira Devi, the wife of RJD Lok Sabha MP Anirudh Prasad alias Sadhu Yadav has submitted her nomination from Gopalganj Assembly constituency even as the RJD boss's Chief Minister wife Rabri Devi was filing her papers from Raghopur constituency in Vaishali yesterday (Feb 4, 2005).

Soon after, Ramadhar Yadav, Sadhu's father-in-law, also filed his nomination from the same constituency as another independent.

"The people of Gopalganj wanted my wife to contest, so I had to give in to the people's wish," Sadhu said adding the RJD might had its compulsions but being a LS member from Gopalganj 'I had to decide on my own.'

RJD has fielded Ambika Yadav in Gopalganj.

On his father-in-law throwing his hat into the ring, the RJD MP said he would pull out of the contest.

The case of Sadhu's elder brother Prabunath, who was expecting a ticket from Mirganj, is no different. He too has filed his nomination for the seat, which falls in Gopalganj, as independent. In this instance the RJD has left the seat for the CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) as part of its seat-sharing arrangement.