Tejashwi Yadav becomes more active in Bihar politics after byelection setback

Bihar Assembly LoP and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav being detained by police personnel during a foot march towards Lok Bhawan over alleged examination paper leaks, unemployment and various other reasons, in Patna on Wednesday, August 19, 2026. | Photo Credit: ANI After the debacle in the Bankipore Assembly byelection, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has become more active in Bihar politics. He is visiting places where incidents have taken place and meeting aggrieved family members.This can be gauged from the fact that on August 19, 2026, the main opposition party, RJD, took out the Lok Bhavan March after a gap of 11 years. The party hit the streets to protest against the government, raising issues such as the alleged firing of an AK-47 during a student protest in Bihar and paper leak issues. Mr. Yadav, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly, led the march.The last Raj Bhavan march was organised in 2015, when the party’s supremo Lalu Prasad had demanded the release of the caste enumeration report based on the 2011 Census. Later, the RJD remained active both in power and in opposition for a long time, but a mass protest of this magnitude was rarely visible.Mr. Yadav has been consistently attacking the government through press conferences and social media posts. However, it was after a long time that he was seen leading a march on foot. In March 2021, Mr. Yadav had protested against a proposed government law that would have allowed anyone to be detained without a warrant. Mr. Yadav was even arrested at that time.He was engaged in political activities through several yatras such as the Janadesh Apman Yatra (August 2017), Berozgari Hatao Yatra (February 2020), Voter Adhikar Yatra along with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (August 2025), and a few more. However, there was no major protest or movement that could create a buzz among party workers and supporters. This time, Mr. Yadav, along with his party MPs, MLAs, and MLCs, did not even mind facing the water cannons during the Lok Bhavan March. Mr. Yadav was completely drenched from top to bottom.Earlier, a narrative was being built up by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and Janata Dal (United) that Tejashwi Yadav hardly remained active in Bihar politics. Many had even said that he only issued press notes, held press conferences and used social media to reach out to people rather than undertaking any grassroots movement. Mr. Yadav had also skipped the entire monsoon session of the Bihar Assembly in July 2026, drawing sharp criticism from ruling party leaders.“In the current political scenario, one cannot do politics by just issuing a press note and writing something on social media. This approach is no longer sufficient, and physical presence is a must to remain in the memory of the voters. The nature of protest within youth is also changing, and so-called Gen Z is more inclined towards aggressive politics,” Sanjay Kumar, a Patna-based political expert, told The Hindu.He further said, “Tejashwi Yadav also has to move beyond the image of a just heir of Lalu Prasad. His recent efforts to hit the streets and engage in direct struggle are seen as part of this strategy. Especially after the humiliating defeat in the Bankipur Assembly byelection in which RJD came third, and its traditional vote (Muslim and Yadav) shifted their loyalties to a new political outfit Jan Suraaj Party, which drew a blank in the 2025 Assembly election.”Mr. Yadav is now spending more time meeting people and students in hospitals who were injured in the police lathi charge. He also met vendors of the Public Distribution System protesting with their demands. The former Deputy Chief Minister also visited his Assembly constituency, Raghopur, to see the flood-affected areas. He visited Darbhanga, where a man from the Muslim community was murdered.Not only this, he met the parents of a youth who was allegedly killed in police custody while in jail in Madhubani district. In the last week, he has made more than a dozen visits to different places to check the ground realities and met affected family members.People are also appreciating him after having a face-to-face meeting with the Leader of Opposition and are hopeful that he will continue to do so, and not just for the time being. Even leaders of his own political party are happy. One senior leader even went on to say, requesting anonymity, that the sleeping leader has awakened.Days after facing defeat in the byelection, Mr. Yadav, who is also the National Working President of the party, dissolved all the committees of the RJD from the block to district level, which are soon to be reconstituted. Published - August 28, 2026 07:20 pm IST