Senior JD(U) leader and Union minister Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh on Monday admitted that the differences between Mokama MLA Anant Kumar Singh and the party’s official candidate from the Patna Graduates’ seat for the Bihar Legislative Council elections, Neeraj Kumar, were the result of past actions, as “there is always a reaction to any action”.

Lalan Singh said Anant Singh was upset over campaign against him and alleged false cases, with JD(U) taking no action. (ANI/HT Photo)

Lalan's remarks are significant as former chief minister Nitish Kumar had met him in the morning, a few hours before Neeraj filed his nomination as the party nominee with a large number of supporters, seeking his fourth consecutive term.

JD(U) working president Sanjay Kumar Jha had earlier this month entrusted Lalan with the responsibility of resolving the issue between the two party leaders that has created an ugly situation for the party.

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Lalan said that he had spoken to Anant Singh, who was upset over attempts to campaign against him during the Assembly election and implicate him in false cases, while the party did not take any action.

“It was a lapse on the part of the JD(U) then, as it failed to take timely action. This is the reason the JD(U) MLA does not want to support Neeraj Kumar. Anant Singh also has several grievances and raised old issues with me to underline that there cannot be clapping with one hand,” the Union minister said before leaving for Delhi.

Lalan, however, said that he had asked Anant not to make public statements against the party, to which the latter agreed. “I requested him not to make anti-party remarks and he said that he would refrain from doing so, blaming the media for making him speak,” he added.

Lalan's remark after speaking to Anant that “there is a reaction to every action” points to the simmering internal dispute within the JD(U), and its impact will be interesting to watch in the run-up to the Council elections.

A day earlier, at a public function in Munger, Lalan Singh had said that there could be a resolution only if both Anant Singh and Neeraj Kumar wanted one, as he did not want to act as an arbitrator.

Amid the continued defiance of Anant, who accompanied Jan Suraaj Party candidate Anuj Singh to file his nomination papers against the party nominee and took out rallies, the problem seems far from over for the JD(U). Lalan has refused to side with Neeraj, citing the remarks made by the Mokama MLA.

“The Council polls have led to a kind of tension in the political atmosphere. Both the NDA and the Opposition seem affected. But the NDA candidates will win all seats,” he added.

But the differences are visible not only in the NDA, where the JD(U) and the BJP are contesting four seats each. In the Opposition too, both the RJD and the Congress are set to face each other on five of the eight seats. While the RJD announced six candidates, the Congress named five without any seat-sharing arrangement.

RJD national working president Tejashwi Yadav downplayed the differences, stating that constituent parties in the Opposition have traditionally contested Graduates’ and Teachers’ constituency elections separately.

The last date for filing nominations is October 6. The elections are scheduled for October 23, while the results will be announced on October 27.