- Rabri Devi has started vacating her 10 Circular Road bungalow where the Yadav family lived for 19 years
- Three to four vans with household items were seen moving out from the Yadav family home late Thursday
- Bihar government allotted Rabri Devi a new official residence at 39 Harding Road on November 25
Former Chief Minister of Bihar, Rabri Devi, has begun the process of vacating her 10 Circular Road bungalow in Bihar - where the Yadav family has lived for 19 years. Three to four pick-up vans, carrying flower pots, plants, and other household items, were seen inside the residence late at night on Thursday - confirming the family's exit from the property, sources said.
The Yadav family or the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party, however, have not issued any official statement.
Why Rabri Devi is vacating bungalow and RJD's initial refusal
The Bihar government's Building Construction Department, on November 25, allotted Rabri Devi a new official residence at 39 Harding Road - which has been "earmarked" as the residence of the leader of the opposition in the legislative council. The order indicated that she would have to vacate the 10 Circular Road residence, where she has lived since 2006.
However, the RJD called it an "act of political malice" and asserted the bungalow situated right across the street from the Chief Minister's official residence 1, Anney Marg, "will not be vacated, come what may". "The decision smacks of malice, the ruling NDA harbours for our leader Lalu Prasad. Why did Chief Minister Nitish Kumar wait for two decades before earmarking a government bungalow for the leader of the opposition in the legislative council? And if it was necessary, why did the government not earmark 10 Circular Road? They should have considered the fact that its occupants, Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi, have both served as chief ministers," he said.
The RJD also said that the facilities at the 10 Circular Road residence have been designed to suit Lalu Yadav - who has been ill.
According to state minister Santosh Kumar Suman, the bungalow had been allotted to Rabri Devi in accordance with an earlier provision of a "life-long" residence for former chief ministers.
The BJP, in response, had raised questions about Rabri Devi's refusal to vacate the residence, saying the Lalu family is "accustomed to enjoying government benefits".
A month after the protests, sources have now indicated the family will vacate the residence after January 14.
Tej Pratap Yadav asked to vacate bungalow
After Rabri Devi, the Building Construction Department also ordered former minister Tej Pratap Yadav to vacate his government-allotted bungalow at 26 M Strand Road. The residence has now been allotted to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Welfare Minister Lakhendra Kumar Roshan.
Tej Pratap Yadav, the elder son of Lalu Yadav, faced a series of setbacks in recent months - especially after his strained ties with the RJD leadership became public after a controversy erupted over a personal photograph that went viral on social media.
