Will repay political debt with interest: Neeraj Kumar on Lalan Singh

Differences within the Janata Dal (United) surfaced on Thursday (October 29, 2026) when party MLC Neeraj Kumar refused to seek the blessings of senior party leader and Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh.

Mr. Neeraj, who has registered victory for the fourth consecutive term in the Patna Graduate constituency, was speaking to reporters after meeting party president Sanjay Jha in Patna.

When reporters asked if he would also go to seek Lalan Singh’s blessings, Neeraj replied, “Shawal hi paida nahi hota hai, akhir mera gunah kya tha ki inti pareshani jhelni padi (There is no doubt about it – what did I do wrong to endure such trouble?”)

During the entire Legislative Council elections, Mr. Singh did not even campaign in support of Neeraj, rather he provided moral support to Anant Singh who campaigned against Neeraj Kumar.

In a direct attack on the Union minister, Mr Kumar said, “My parents and forefathers taught me the lesson that if you ever take a debt, remember to pay it back and I will pay that political debt with interest.”

He further said, “Those who want to congratulate are doing so – they are sending blessings through social media and through various other channels and I have received immense love from party workers.”

Asked if reconciliation was possible, Mr Kumar said: “I have not even tried, I have never been for any. However, everyone should do their ‘party duty’, just as I have done my own party duty.”

Asked again who he was fighting against in the party, Mr. Kumar said, “Things are clear to all, no need to hint. You will soon realize in whose house there will be political grief.”

When the conflict between Neeraj Kumar and Anant Singh started, JD(U) working president Sanjay Kumar Jha said that Lalan Singh was assigned to resolve the issue. All three leaders belong to the Bhumihar caste.

However, after meeting Anant Singh, the Union minister defended Bahubali (strongman) MLA from Mokama and pointed to Neeraj Kumar’s past actions and claimed that when Anant Singh contested the elections (2025 assembly elections), some party leaders, including Neeraj Kumar, opposed him and the party leadership did not take action against Neeraj then.

“Har kriya ki pratikriya hoti hai (every action must have a reaction); clapping requires two hands – both hands must come together. The party should have stepped in when the campaign against him (Anant Singh) was going on; the party should have taken the initiative at that time. The state wing of the party did not act then,” Mr. Lalan Singh said on October 5, 2026 while talking to reporters at Patna Airport.

Lalan Singh indirectly gave moral support to Anant Singh and then Anant Singh openly opposed JD(U) official candidate Neeraj and campaigned for Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) candidate Anuj Singh. On October 24, Anant Singh and his wife Neelam Devi were expelled from the JD(U) for six years on charges of anti-party activities.

On 29 October 2026, Bihar’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) office released figures showing Neeraj defeating Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate Dilip Kumar by a margin of 4,665 votes, while the JSP candidate finished third. Overall Neeraj Kumar got 19930 votes, Dilip Kumar 15275 votes and Anuj 11278 votes.

After the victory, Neeraj Kumar met all the top JD(U) leaders to seek their blessings, including former Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary and Sanjay Jha. He also met Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) president and Rajya Sabha member Upendra Kushwaha.

In contrast, Mr. Jha held a review meeting at the party office on the Legislative Council results, where the party could win only one seat and lost three others.

Mr Jha said the party would soon act against other rebel leaders. Sources in the party said that JD(U) leader and minister Ashok Choudhary is also in the crosshairs of the party leadership and that action could be taken against him as he was secretly working against the party’s official candidate.

In Darbhanga Graduate constituency, RJD candidate Anil Jha defeated BJP’s Sarvesh Kumar. With this, out of eight seats in the Legislative Council, RJD and BJP got two seats each, JD(U) and JSP got one and two independent candidates.

Published – 30 Oct 2026 05:56 IST