Lalu eyes RS seat for Rabri from Bihar

They may have joined hands to fight the BJP, but Lalu Prasad and Nitish Kumar have one more reason to come together. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader is said to be eyeing a Rajya Sabha seat for his wife Rabri Devi, who lost the Lok Sabha polls. 

Right now, RJD has no representation in Rajya Sabha after Ramkripal Yadav left the party and defeated Lalu’s daughter Misa Bharati in Pataliputra seat on a BJP ticket.

Rajya Sabha will have three vacancies from Bihar following the exit of Ramkripal, the BJP’s Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Lok Janshakti Party’s Ramvilas Paswan, all of whom will be entering the LS after winning their election. 

JD(U) sources say that the combined strength of their party with RJD and Congress is adequate to send two members to the RS. They believe a seat for Rabri Devi is not improbable and could in fact set the stage for a smooth relationship between the parties. 

Following his loss in the LS polls, JD(U) chief Sharat Yadav is also keen to enter the upper house, according to a party source.