The Legacy of Lalu Yadav: From Charwaha Schools to Bihar's Political Landscape in 2025 Elections

Before becoming known for his witty one-liners in the Lok Sabha that amused even his political rivals, Lalu Prasad Yadav's journey began in Bihar's humble Phulwaria village. His political career spans over five decades, from his rural origins to the corridors of the Patna Secretariat and Parliament.

While his son Tejashwi Yadav now leads the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) as the apparent successor, 77-year-old Lalu remains an influential figure in Bihar politics. Though less active now, his socio-political legacy continues to shape the state's landscape as Bihar approaches another electoral contest.

The innovative "Charwaha Schools" emerged in the 1990s during Lalu's tenure as Chief Minister. These unique educational institutions welcomed barefoot children who typically spent their days herding cattle.

The concept originated when Lalu, during an unscheduled visit to rural Bihar, encountered children tending goats. Upon learning they couldn't attend regular schools due to their livestock responsibilities, he developed a solution: bringing education directly to them.

Thus, the Charwaha Vidyalayas were established—wall-less classrooms offering flexible attendance where livestock grazed nearby and children learned between their daily chores. Students could attend according to their family obligations, with food sometimes provided as an incentive for education.

Born to impoverished Yadav farmers in Gopalganj, with illiterate parents who never recorded his birth date, Lalu emerged through student activism at Patna University in the early 1970s. The charismatic young man with distinctive thick hair and sharp wit rose to become the university students' union president, eventually finding mentorship under socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan.

When Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed the Emergency in 1975, Lalu was imprisoned. Following its lifting two years later, he successfully won election to the Lok Sabha on a Janata Party ticket, becoming one of India's youngest MPs.

His political ascent continued unabated. By 1990, hailed as the "messiah" of backward classes and minorities by supporters and champion of the "gareeb-gurba" (poor and powerless), Lalu assumed office as Bihar's Chief Minister.

Journalist Nalin Verma, who collaborated with Lalu on his autobiography "Gopalganj to Raisina: My Political Journey," discovered a man who rarely adhered to planned discussions. "I aimed to steer our conversations toward politics," Verma recalled, "but Lalu invariably wandered," often discussing topics like sattu, aalu-baingan, and village folk songs of Gorakhnath.

When discussing his mentor Jayaprakash Narayan, Lalu would visibly soften, recounting to Verma how "Babuji" once provided him Rs 200 to support his wife, Rabri Devi, and their newborn daughter, Misa.

In 1996, the Rs 900 crore fodder scam emerged, permanently altering Lalu's political trajectory and preventing his return to the chief minister's office. Under investigative pressure, he installed his politically inexperienced wife, Rabri Devi, as Bihar Chief Minister.

The following year, Lalu broke from the Janata Dal to establish the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Rabri Devi maintained power until 2005, when Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United), supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), ended RJD's governance.

Two decades later, Lalu's son Tejashwi Yadav stands as the INDIA alliance's presumptive chief ministerial candidate in Bihar. The RJD, aligned with Congress and the Left, confronts the NDA coalition led by Nitish Kumar.

The upcoming Bihar assembly elections will be conducted in two phases on November 6 and 11, with results announced on November 14.