Saturday, January 7 2006 15:49 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Just a few months after power slipped away from the hands of the Lalu-Rabri duo, senior Rashtriya Janata Party (RJD) leader Ramai Ram today (Jan 6, 2006) revolted against his party leadership for allegedly denying him an important position in the party charging it with 'ignoring dalits and leaders enjoying significant mass support.'

Apparently peeved at denial of an important position in the party, Ram, a senior minister in the erstwhile Rabri Devi cabinet, alleged here that leaders like Union Minister for Rural Development Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Union Minister of State for Agriculture Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Union Minister of State Prem Gupta and Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Kanti Singh who have 'no significant mass support' have blessings of Lalu Prasad.

"But a person like me enjoying people's support has virtually become unimportant and irrelevant. The dalits are being ignored and the leaders who played a vital role in the establishment of RJD have become unimportant," Ram said.

He said that while Rabri Devi herself has become Opposition leader in the state Assembly, Shakeel Ahmed Khan is the party's deputy leader in the house.

"Another man close to Lalu Prasad has been nominated chief whip of the RJD legislature party," Ram said without naming former Bihar minister Ramchandra Purve.

"Lalu seems to have no soft-corner for a person like me who has been an MLA since long (eight times) and was cabinet minister several times in Bihar," he alleged.

Ram, however, said he would continue his fight for getting the justice and would soon announce his programme.

He further sharpened his attack on Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Akhilesh Singh and Kanti Singh alleging that the RJD candidates lost the elections from most of the Assembly segments in their respective parliamentary constituencies of Vaishali, Motihari and Ara.