- The BJP's Rajiv Pratap Rudy says he is the voice of the forward castes in Bihar
- He is leading the Sanga Yatra to unite all forward castes, especially Rajputs, in Bihar
- Rudy has contested against multiple members of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s family in the Lok Sabha elections
Former Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy - four-time MP from Bihar -- has said he has become the voice of the ignored forward castes in Bihar, where politics, for the last few decades, has revolved around social justice and backward castes. In an exclusive interview with NDTV, Rudy said it is "time for the forward castes to unite".
"You cannot simply ignore Rajputs saying they comprise only 3.5 per cent of the population. "Rajput and other forward castes need to know their strength and take their due. I have become their voice as they are being ignored," he added.
To this end, he said, he is undertaking the "Sanga Yatra" -- named after Maharana of Mewar Rana Sanga -- which is an "effort to unite all forward castes in Bihar, including Rajputs".
As a three-time MP from Saran (previously Chhapra), Rudy said he is the only leader in the state who has consistently defeated members of Lalu Yadav's family -- from Lalu Yadav to his wife Rabri Devi, their daughter Rohini Acharya and Teja Pratap Yadav's father-in-law Chandrika Rai.
"I probably am the only leader who has fought against all the members of Lalu Prasad Yadav's family," he said.
A former Union minister for civil aviation and skill development, Rudy was dropped from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ministry in 2017 and was almost immediately named the BJP's national spokesperson. Today, he said he has not been ignored by the party leadership. "I am a committed member of the BJP... As I have not got any major responsibility at the Centre, I am getting more time to focus on my constituency," he said.
Regarding Prashant Kishor - the election strategist who switched to politics and is considered the wild card in the coming assembly election, Rudy said he is "not a mainstream political player".
"He (Prashant Kishor) first has to enter the political arena, prove himself, and only then he can begin targeting others," he said.
"You have to first become MLA or MP, perform inside the house, handle people's issues and only then you can start pointing fingers at others," he added.
