The fodder scam took away Lalu Prasad Yadav’s chair but reshaped Bihar politics forever. To save himself, Lalu handed over the Chief Minister’s post to his wife Rabri Devi on 25 July 1997. Just five days later, he surrendered before the court. Rabri Devi’s sudden rise as CM became a turning point in Bihar’s political history. Lalu, famous for his sharp maneuvering, continued to guide the government from behind the scenes.
The 1995 Bihar Assembly elections had already shown Lalu’s unmatched charisma. Under his leadership, Janata Dal won a record 167 seats and formed a full majority government. Earlier, the party had only 122 seats. BJP, with 41 seats, emerged as the second-largest party, while Congress slipped badly to third position with just 29 seats compared to 42 earlier.
This period also saw Nitish Kumar break away to form the Samata Party, strengthening BJP in Bihar. Meanwhile, Congress continued to weaken as socialist parties like the SP and BSP gained ground in both Bihar and UP.
Internal rifts soon grew in Janata Dal. When the fodder scam cornered Lalu, he split the party, created Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and took 136 MLAs with him. Only 31 remained with Sharad Yadav. With support from Congress and independents, Lalu managed to retain power, but Rabri Devi now sat in the CM’s chair—a symbol of both crisis management and political continuity.
