Patna: Leader of opposition in the state assembly Tejashwi Prasad Yadav faced angry slogans and calls for his resignation as an MLA when he visited Raghopur in Vaishali district on Wednesday night to console the families of victims of the boat tragedy that claimed 13 lives, mostly children, a day earlier.Raghopur has been a stronghold of Tejashwi’s family for over three decades. The constituency has elected his parents, RJD chief Lalu Prasad and former CM Rabri Devi, for multiple terms. Tejashwi has represented the seat for three consecutive terms since 2015.On Thursday, a group of grieving villagers met RJD chief Lalu Prasad and former CM Rabri Devi, and sought their help. “Lalu told us to do whatever he can for them,” a villager told the media in Patna.A video of Tejashwi’s visit to Raghopur has gone viral on social media. It shows angry villagers surrounding the RJD’s national working president, with some raising slogans, pushing towards him and asking him to resign if he could not address their problems. Tejashwi, however, proceeded to the houses of families who lost children in the boat tragedy.“If you can’t solve our problems, then resign,” the villagers shouted. They said there were no proper arrangements for boat services and communication in the area and demanded that Tejashwi respond to their concerns.The anger came amid visits by his political rivals, Union ministers Chirag Paswan, who is also the LJP (RV) president, and Nityanand Rai of the BJP, who had reached the area before Tejashwi to express sympathy with the affected families.Defending his absence from Raghopur earlier, Tejashwi said he was in Delhi to attend the opposition’s protest against what it described as the “murder of democracy and vote theft”. He said the opposition had gathered in Delhi for the protest, but he rushed to the spot as soon as he received information about the boat tragedy.Tejashwi sought a high-level probe into the incident and strict action against those responsible.
