"People Want Me To Tolerate Insult": Pappu Yadav On Gaffe At Congress Rally

Bihar politician Pappu Yadav - who merged his Jan Adhikar Party with the Congress in January last year - has played down the embarrassing scenes at a joint opposition rally this evening to protest last-minute revisions to the voter list before the Assembly election later this year.

Purnia Lok Sabha MP Yadav and the Congress' Kanhaiya Kumar were stopped from boarding an open van after Rahul Gandhi ran up the steps. Before them others, including Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav, were allowed onto the platform built on top of the van.

The videos have been widely shared online; in one clip Mr Yadav, 57, can be seen trying to climb the stairs and even being helped by someone before the security guards stop him.

It is unclear why Mr Yadav (and Mr Kumar) were stopped, but the incident has already triggered jibes from the Janata Dal United-led government, which includes the Bharatiya Janata Party.

📍Patna | Video: Pappu Yadav, Kanhaiya Kumar Stopped From Boarding Van With Rahul Gandhi https://t.co/a8v4UMyNe4#BiharElections2025 pic.twitter.com/0PevBRFSU8

— NDTV (@ndtv) July 9, 2025

Mr Yadav spoke to NDTV shortly after but, surprisingly, chose not to criticise the Congress, although he did say that what had happened to him was an "insult".

"The people themselves want me to tolerate this insult... and remain silent. I am staying silent because of the people," he said, "Every day, out of 24 hours I work for 23, for the people of Bihar. I have nothing left in my life... I have given up my life. I speak for the poor people only."

READ | Pappu Yadav, Kanhaiya Kumar Stopped From Boarding Van With Rahul Gandhi

The veteran politician, whose real name is Rajesh Ranjan and who is a six-time MP, chose instead to talk about the Election Commission's controversial Special Intensive Revision.

The poll body says this exercise will ensure 'ineligible voters' are removed - by demanding people submit a list of government IDs to verify themselves - but the opposition has questioned the timing of the revision, a process that normally takes several months, and alleged it is meant to weed out voters from minority communities and those who might be against the BJP.

NDTV Explains | EC Is Revising Bihar Voter List. Why Is The Opposition Against It

The Supreme Court has refused an interim stay but agreed to hear petitions challenging it.

While the revision itself has been criticised, opposition parties have also asked why the Aadhaar - the government's flagship identity scheme - has been removed from the list of accepted IDs.

It also doesn't include a PAN, or Permanent Account Number, card or a driving license, only passports and birth, matriculation, and domicile, caste, or forest-rights certificates.

"You are asking 11 documents from us... you are asking for my birth certificate... citizenship papers... so what is the meaning of the Aadhaar card?" Mr Yadav asked, alleging the voter list revision had been ordered by the BJP to benefit it and its ally, the JDU, in the election.

The Jan Adhikar leader also said he had faith in the Supreme Court and that he was confident it would find in favour of the crores of people who might be excluded from the Bihar election.

NDTV is now available on WhatsApp channels. Click on the link to get all the latest updates from NDTV on your chat.