Patna, New Delhi:
It is a triumphant return for Bihar's veteran politician Lalu Prasad Yadav. Just two days ago, his RJD and Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP trounced the NDA in by-polls on 18 assembly constituencies across the state.
"I agree that in our previous tenures in Bihar, our party has made a lot of mistakes. I want to apologise and assure the people of Bihar that those mistakes will never again be repeated," Lalu said.
The assembly by-poll victory means Lalu's stock in Delhi has also gone up overnight. Before leaving for Patna, Lalu met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to discuss future electoral tie ups.
"Everyone may abandon her, but I will never abandon Sonia Gandhi. We discussed tie-up for Jharkhand. In Bihar, Ram Vilas and I are together, if more secular forces want to join us, they can," Lalu said.
But while things may be looking up for Lalu politically, it is not a rosy picture for him on the personal front. Railway Minister Mamta Bannerjee has sought a CBI probe against him on allegation of a land-for-railway jobs scam and it will take a lot for Lalu to battle these demons, as he goes about preparing for next years assembly elections in Bihar.