He had been refused bail three times earlier, and the unanticipated good fortune of the April 17 bail order by the Jharkhand High Court has injected a sense of optimism among the party cadre and Lalu’s supporters in Bihar.
However, nearly two weeks after the bail order, Lalu hasn’t yet made it to his home state, because he is in AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences), New Delhi, being treated for various ailments. Besides, his lawyers in Jharkhand have yet to collect the orders from the court, so he is still technically in judicial custody. The RJD patriarch will be turning 73 this June and is likely to continue for some time in Delhi, given the pandemic situation. Sources close to the family say Lalu may stay in AIIMS for now till he can shift to his daughter and Rajya Sabha MP Misa Bharti’s house in the capital.
A senior RJD leader, speaking anonymously, admitted that a free Lalu allows a lot more “leeway to the party”. “Lalu can reach out to anyone, cutting across the political divide. Whether it is Jitan Ram Manjhi of HAM (Hindustani Awam Morcha), Mukesh Sahani (Vikassheel Insaan Party), the five legislators of the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM (All India Majlis-Ittihad-ul-Muslimeen), or even Nitish Kumar, nobody is off limits for Lalu Prasad. If Lalu is present and leading from the front, he has much more acceptability than his son Tejashwi can ever hope for,” he says.
Denne historien er fra May 10, 2021-utgaven av India Today.
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Denne historien er fra May 10, 2021-utgaven av India Today.
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He gave the beat to the world
He would pick up the rhythms of each experience of mobility and weave them into his taals. Thus it was that he reflected joy and laughter in rhythmic cycles...such was the magic of Zakir's fingersText and photographs by Raghu Rai
KERALA TOURISM CAMPAIGN, 1989 - TICKETS TO PARADISE
All it took was a catchy tagline-'God's Own Country'-for the world to discover Kerala's wealth of natural beauty. It remains among the best tourism ad campaigns, earning the state a place among top 10 international destinations
SPIRITUALITY - THE GURUS OF COOL
Among the cult Indian gurus, no one had a bigger hold on western minds than 'Osho' Rajneesh. He's also perhaps the role model for the enterprise-building gurus of today
RETAIL SHOPPING - THE MALL MANIA
Shopping malls, a 1990s innovation in India, changed the way the Indian middle class shops. Their success now lies in being 'shoppertainment' destinations, offering something for everyone
CULINARY RENAISSANCE, 1978 - TANDOORI NIGHTS
ITC's Bukhara and Dum Pukht turned the world to tandoori cuisine and had an enormous impact on the F&B industry. Decades on, they are still a pit-stop for celebrities and heads of state visiting Delhi
INDIAN WRITING IN ENGLISH - REVENGE OF THE NATIVE
Rushdie lit the way but Indian writing in English has taken a life of its own in the past few decades, with translated Indian fiction most recently having its moment in the sun
INDIAN ART - A BRUSH WITH GOLD DUST
The 1990s economic liberalisation came as oxygen, lighting up the Indian art scene. Today, artworks by established masters routinely go for astronomical amounts
FESTIVAL OF INDIA, 1982 - CULTURE CAPITAL
The Festival of India grew into a symbol of our 'soft power', introducing our art and aesthetics to a global audience while also helping rebrand our domestic products
THE INDIPOP TREND - DISCO GOES DESI
For ages, the film song ruled. Nothing else was audible. Then came Nazia, charioteered by Biddu, and Indian ears went into a pleasant madness. Literally, Disco Deewane. A whole genre was born
SHOLAY 1975 - THE BIRTH OF THE FANDEMIC
India had seen hits before. But Sholay seared into its collective psyche like a badland bullet. The effect was on a scale never seen before- one film creating a new mass folk culture. And a trail of monster blockbusters that still continues
