Tej Pratap Yadav Slams Ram Vilas Paswan Over "Angootha Chhap" Jibe

Patna: Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tej Pratap Yadav on Tuesday hit back at Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan for his veiled attack on his mother Rabri Devi, by posting a cartoon on Twitter.

At a press conference in Patna last week, Mr Paswan had criticized the RJD for its opposition to the upper castes quota. He alleged that the party founded by Lalu Yadav believed merely raising slogans and making ”angootha chhap” (illiterate person) the Chief Minister.

Although Mr Paswan did not take Rabri Devi’s name, his remark was inferred as a veiled attack on the former Bihar Chief Minister.

Incidentally, Mr Paswan was an RJD ally before he joined the BJP-led NDA ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Mr Yadav shared a cartoon on his Twitter handle showing Mr Paswan as mythical demon being slain by his mother Rabri Devi shown as Goddess Durga riding a lion.

“A woman gives birth, motherly affection and also forgives mistakes. But history is witness that those insulting a woman, even big demons like Ravana and Duryodhana, were vanquished. What is to say of these opportunistic politicians,” Mr Yadav tweeted in Hindi, captioning the cartoon.

Notably, Mr Paswan’s comments had drawn flak from his own daughter Asha who had said that she felt hurt by the remarks as her own mother was illiterate.

RJD leader Asha, who is Mr Paswan’s daughter from his first marriage, had also staged a protest demanding that the Lok Janshakti Party chief apologize for the remarks.

Members of Lalu Yadav’s family had, so far, refrained from commenting on Mr Paswan’s remark against the former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, who is at present the leader of the opposition in the state legislative council.