Sanjay Yadav: The “Eyes and Ears” of Tejashwi, and the Second Haryanvi Who Has Held a Strong Grip in RJD for 30 Years

In the ongoing power struggle within the Lalu Prasad Yadav family, one name from Haryana has emerged at the center of the storm—Sanjay Yadav. He is the second Haryanvi after Premchand Gupta to secure a powerful and enduring position inside the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). While Gupta remained a trusted confidant of Lalu Prasad for nearly three decades, the political spotlight is now firmly on Sanjay Yadav, a close friend and key advisor to Tejashwi Yadav.

A Haryanvi Strategist Who Rose to Rajya Sabha

Sanjay Yadav, who hails from Mahendragarh, Haryana, was nominated to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar in 2024. His elevation came as Tejashwi sidelined several senior party leaders and even family members to push his childhood friend into the Upper House. Sanjay’s term will continue until 2030.
With the intensifying dispute over political succession in the Lalu family, Sanjay Yadav’s name has become central to the public and political debate.

Tej Pratap Calls Him a “Jaichand”

Following RJD’s defeat in the Bihar Assembly elections, fissures within the Lalu family widened sharply. Tejashwi now faces growing resistance from his elder brother Tej Pratap and sisters. All fingers point to Sanjay Yadav—the political advisor accused of driving key decisions, including candidate selection and campaign design.

A disgruntled Rohini Acharya openly blamed Sanjay for the electoral loss, even taking swipes at him online. Tej Pratap Yadav had earlier branded Sanjay a “Jaichand,” accusing him of dividing the family. BJP and JDU leaders too joined the debate, referring to him as the “Haryanvi friend” responsible for the internal rift.

The Original Haryanvi in RJD: Premchand Gupta

Sanjay Yadav’s rise has often been compared with that of Premchand Gupta, the long-serving Rajya Sabha MP from Haryana’s Bhiwani. Lalu Prasad relied deeply on Gupta, who was elected to the Upper House five consecutive times since 1996 despite opposition from within the party. Gupta also served as a Cabinet Minister in the UPA government.

Gupta remained an unwavering loyalist of Lalu—standing by him during the fodder scam, the IRCTC land-for-jobs case, and other controversies. He continues to be a co-accused in the land-for-jobs case. Like Gupta, Sanjay Yadav also maintains a low public profile and rarely speaks.

The Man Who Became Tejashwi’s Political Brain

Sanjay’s proximity to Tejashwi dates back to their cricket training days. He moved to Patna in 2014 at Tejashwi’s invitation and soon became involved in RJD’s back-end campaign work.
In 2015, he handled key aspects of the party’s election strategy, which was then executed in collaboration with Prashant Kishor’s team.
By 2020, after RJD’s strong performance in the Assembly election, Sanjay emerged as the party’s chief strategist and earned Lalu Prasad’s confidence.

Since then, the Tejashwi–Sanjay duo has become one of the most powerful political partnerships in RJD.
Supporters of Tej Pratap allege that, ahead of the election, Sanjay played a crucial role in sidelining several family members and centralizing control around Tejashwi.

Even controversies surrounding Tej Pratap’s personal life were allegedly circulated from within the RJD camp, deepening internal divides.

Family Turmoil: Sisters Leave Home, Anushka Remains Silent

As tensions escalated, three of Lalu’s daughters—Ragini, Chanda, and Rajyalakshmi—left their father’s home following Rohini Acharya’s public outburst.
Misa Bharti remains silent, observing the developments closely.
One daughter, Anushka Yadav, has stayed completely away from the conflict. Married into the influential Rao family of Haryana, Anushka is the wife of former Rewari MLA Chiranjeev Rao. Her father-in-law, Ajay Singh Yadav, served as Finance Minister in the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government.

A New Power Equation in RJD

With Rohini’s rebellion shaking the party and the family, political observers believe the turbulence is far from over.
However, many within RJD feel that despite the chaos, the party’s reins are likely to consolidate fully in Tejashwi Yadav’s hands—guided closely by his trusted advisor Sanjay Yadav.