NOW I AM FREE, I’LL KEEP TELLING STORIES: SHIVANAND TIWARI

NOW I AM FREE, I’LL KEEP TELLING STORIES: SHIVANAND TIWARI

20-NOV-ENG 7

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

PATNA--------------------------Shivanand Tiwari, former RJD national vice president, expressed his inner anguish over Tejashwi Yadav's removal from the vice president post and his neglect within the party, along with memories of his political journey with the RJD supremo. He wrote, "During the Bihar agitation, Lalu Yadav and I were locked in the same room in Phulwari Sharif jail. Lalu Yadav was a prominent figure in that movement. But his aspirations were modest. After dinner, as we lay down on our respective cots to sleep, Lalu Yadav shared his dream for the future with me. Lalu told me, "Baba, I want to be a leader like Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav." It seems that sometimes, God listens. Today, it appears that his wish has been fulfilled. The entire family exerted considerable effort. His party won only twenty-five MLAs.

The question may arise: I myself was the national vice president of that party. Why am I saying such a thing after all this? I was the National Vice President. That's a thing of the past. Tejashwi not only removed me from the position of Vice President but also denied me a place in the executive committee. Why? Because I was saying that the intensive revision of the voter list was a conspiracy against democracy. Take to the streets with Rahul Gandhi against it. Fight back. Face police beatings. Go to jail.

But he was taking the oath of office as Chief Minister in a dream world. I was disrupting his dreams by shaking him up. Lalu Yadav, like Dhritrashtra, was warming the throne for his son.

Now I am free. I have found leisure. Now I will keep telling stories...