Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav was born five years before the massacre of Yadavs in the Lakhochak in 1925 and died just two months after the formal eclipse of the so called Yadav rule in Bihar. Even though he was not connected to either of these two events, yet he played one of the most decisive role in the subaltern assertion in Bihar in the intervening period. He was possibly the first public figure from the subaltern rank to be referred as 'Sher-e-Bihar', when such honorific titles were the exclusive preserve of the upper caste elites. Not only this honorific was used in his public meetings, he was also possibly the first group of Yadavs who defied the then social authority to affix 'Singh' in his surname. He was also possibly the first leader from the lower social stock, apart from Jagjivan Ram, who was referred with reverence as 'Babu'. The high pedestal which Jagjivam Ram enjoyed was because of his total cooption by the then ruling traditional elites, but Ram Lakhan Babu created his own brand to elicit respect. This macho assertion of the subaltern, symbolized through Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav, was rooted not only to the 'Janao Pahno' (sacred thread) movement of Lakhochak but also to graduation of Patna and its hinterland, during the last century, as a 'cereal-milk-vegetable bowl' of the state. Patna had emerged as the state capital in 1912 of the newly formed state of Bihar (separated from Bengal Presidency), followed by the establishment of military cantonment in its periphery, and then installation of the railway line connecting it to Kolkata and eastern Uttar Pradesh. All these created huge market for cereal, milk and vegetable capitalism. This opportunity was fully utilised by the local agro-entrepreneurs from the backward social stocks of Yadav, Koeri or Kurmi.

Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav was essentially the organic leader of this upwardly mobile Yadavs of the Patna hinterland. His preeminence within their rank remained unquestioned inspite of parallel powerful socialist and communist movement in Bihar. If he were authentically coopted in the power structure of the Congress Party, its script in the state would have probably been different. On the contrary, many inconsequential Yadav leaders were promoted to keep him politically out of reckoning. Consequently, the final years of his political life were not very eventful. But those who value social justice will do well to remember that, with the passing away of Ram Lakhan Babu, they have lost one of the pioneers of the ideal.

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I didn't expect Mr. Saibal Gupta to eulogise the late Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav. In the garb of subaltern assertion, leaders like Yadav turned Bihar into a cesspool of crime. I would like to remind Mr. Gupta that Yadav's son was accused of misbehaving with a crew memeber on board an Indian Airlines flight. And the messiah of (social) justice that Yadav was, he turned a blind eye to the (mis) deeds of his son. I am also reminded of the culpability of Yadav's son in an embezzlement case when P.V. Narasimha Rao was the prime minister. I expect Mr. Gupta to highlight contributions of a number of people who sacrificed for Bihar rather than praising those who harboured criminals, especially when Nitish Kumar is trying to rid the State of criminals.

Mayank Bhardwaj
New Delhi
mayankb@journalist.com

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Just read Saibal Gupta's one sided obituary of Ram Lakhan Singh Yadav. In the name of subaltern ascendancy Dr Gupta has ignored Ram Lakhan Yadav's contribution to the criminalization of politics in Bihar. That he battled upper caste hegemony is to be appreciated but his role in exploiting and keeping the EBC's and especially the Scheduled Castes, marginalized should also be kept in mind. Like all politcians in the country he too quietly kept supporting his son even though he was caught in a brothel in Kolkatta and was a major player in the 130 crore scam during Narsimhan Rao's ministry that tainted Ram Lakhan too. Bihar certainly deserved a better leader.

Arvind Verma
USA
averma1978@gmail.com