Tej Pratap demands better medical treatment for Lalu Prasad

RANCHI: Former Bihar minister Tej Pratap met his father and jailed RJD president Lalu Prasad on Tuesday at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (Rims) here and said the Jharkhand government should provide better treatment to his ailing father. Tej's meeting with his father is being described by political observers as "a bid to break the deadlock between the two after the former landed in a series of political controversies and family problems".
Tej had separated with his wife Aishwarya, the daughter of his father's friend, soon after their marriage and had recently said the sacked JD(U) leader Prasanth Kishor is welcome to join RJD, which is seen as a move to undermine the hierarchy of the Lalu-led party. The former Bihar minister, however, did not comment on any of these issues while talking to the media after meeting his father.
He said, "I request the Jharkhand government to provide better medical treatment for my father. He looked a bit down and his blood sugar is also high."
Tej, the eldest son of Lalu, said his father is suffering from multiple health problems, particularly after he underwent a bypass heart surgery. Lalu is serving jail terms after he was convicted in various fodder scam cases but is undergoing treatment at Rims following deterioration in his health. Dr D K Jha of Rims said Lalu's blood urea and creatinine level were fluctuating, but his overall condition was stable. He said, "Lalu has been put on a strict vegetarian diet and has been asked to stop high-calorie food."
Hailing the performance of the JMM-Congress-RJD combine in the Jharkhand assembly polls, Tej said the ouster of the BJP government here has set the tone for uprooting the BJP-led NDA government across the country. He saidd, "The trend of installing non-BJP governments will continue in Delhi and Bihar too." He also appealed to RJD workers to strive to throw out the JD(U)-led NDA government in Bihar, where the assembly polls are scheduled to be held later this year.
On his younger brother, Tejashwi, projected as the mahagathbandhan's CM face of Bihar, Tej said, "I have already put the crown on my 'Arjun' to overpower JD(U) and BJP in Bihar." Tej added that RJD's students' wing is continuously opposing the CAA and the proposed NRC in his state.