Tejashwi%20Yadav%20may%20have%20lost%20the%20electoral%20battle%20and%20his%20hopes%20of%20donning%20the%20mantle%20of%20Bihar%20chief%20minister%20may%20have%20dashed.%20Yet%2C%20there%20can%20be%20no%20denying%20that%20the%20political%20churning%20that%20he%20has%20undergone%20over%20the%20past%20two%20months%20has%20enabled%20him%20to%20establish%20himself%20as%20a%20leader%20in%20his%20own%20right.

The%2031-year-old%20son%20of%20both%20former%20Bihar%20chief%20ministers%20Rabri%20and%20Laloo%20Prasad%20Yadav%20did%20not%20succeed%20in%20making%20a%20career%20for%20himself%20in%20cricket%2C%20even%20as%20he%20reached%20the%20IPL.%20Fact%20remains%20that%20he%20has%20clearly%20carved%20a%20niche%20for%20himself%20in%20the%20political%20arena%20of%20not%20just%20a%20politically%20volatile%20state%20like%20Bihar%2C%20but%20has%20paved%20way%20to%20make%20his%20presence%20felt%20even%20at%20the%20national%20level.

Once%20he%20took%20a%20plunge%20in%20the%20cesspool%20of%20Bihar%20politics%20and%20circumstances%20compelled%20him%20to%20venture%20into%20leading%20his%20father%u2019s%20Rashtriya%20Janata%20Dal%20%28RJD%29%20into%20a%20crucial%20battle%20for%20the%20revival%20of%20the%20party%20that%20had%20been%20down%20and%20out%20for%2015%20years%2C%20there%20was%20no%20looking%20back.%26nbsp%3B

Unlike%20his%20parallel%20Akhilesh%20Yadav%20in%20neighbouring%20Uttar%20Pradesh%2C%20where%20his%20father%20Samajwadi%20Party%20supremo%20Mulayam%20Singh%20Yadav%20stood%20beside%20him%20to%20install%20him%20on%20the%20political%20pedestal%2C%20Tejashwi%20had%20to%20fend%20for%20himself.%20With%20Laloo%20doing%20a%20jail%20term%20for%20his%20involvement%20in%20large%20scale%20corruption%2C%20the%20young%20boy%20was%20poised%20to%20do%20it%20alone.

And%20the%20battle%20was%20a%20mean%20task%20as%20he%20was%20pitted%20against%20two%20tall%20political%20stalwarts%20of%20the%20country%20%u2013%20the%20most%20formidable%20of%20all%20-%20prime%20minister%20Narendra%20Modi%20and%20Bihar%u2019s%20veteran%20Nitish%20Kumar%2C%20who%20had%20been%20a%20one-time%20comrade-in-arms%20of%20Tejashwi%u2019s%20father.%26nbsp%3B

Tejashwi%20did%20a%20brief%20two-year%20stint%20as%20Nitish%u2019s%20deputy%20chief%20minister%20between%202015-2017.%20But%20all%20that%20remained%20visible%20about%20him%20was%20his%20overwhelming%20naivety%20and%20uncontrollable%20immaturity.%20His%20skirmishes%20with%20%u201CNitish%20chacha%u201D%20became%20the%20talk%20of%20Bihar%20until%20he%20drew%20so%20much%20flak%20that%20Nitish%20Kumar%20decided%20to%20call%20it%20a%20day%20and%20part%20ways%20with%20RJD%20and%20create%20space%20for%20himself%20under%20the%20NDA%20umbrella%20which%20let%20him%20don%20the%20chief%20minister%u2019s%20mantle%20yet%20again.

Sure%20enough%2C%20the%20battle%20for%20Bihar%20now%20was%20his%20major%20litmus%20test%20for%20his%20political%20prowess.%20He%20took%20off%20on%20a%20dull%20note%20and%20was%20not%20taken%20seriously%20until%20as%20late%20as%20the%20beginning%20of%20October.%20No%20political%20analyst%20was%20ready%20to%20give%20him%20any%20rating%20until%20he%20started%20pulling%20crowds%20at%20his%20rallies.%20Largely%20formed%20of%20youth%20%u2013%20cutting%20across%20caste%20lines%20%u2013%20the%20crowds%20looked%20far%20more%20vibrant%20and%20enthusiastic%20than%20those%20visible%20at%20the%20rallies%20of%20Modi%20and%20Nitish.

The%20media%2C%20which%20seemed%20to%20have%20written%20off%20the%20junior%20inexperienced%20Yadav%20in%20the%20beginning%2C%20suddenly%20began%20to%20focus%20on%20him.%20And%20here%20was%20no%20way%20one%20could%20blame%20the%20media.%20The%20arithmetic%20stood%20clearly%20against%20Tejashwi%2C%20who%20had%20no%20choice%20but%20to%20stitch%20a%20%u2018mahagathbandhan%u2019%20%28the%20grand%20alliance%29%20only%20with%20less%20significant%20and%20smaller%20parties%20%u2013%20Congress%20and%20Left%20parties.

Bihar%u2019s%20history%20had%20made%20it%20loud%20and%20clear%20that%20every%20time%20two%20of%20its%20three%20major%20political%20players%20joined%20hands%2C%20they%20were%20set%20to%20rule%20the%20state.%20Therefore%20Tejashwi%20stood%20very%20little%20chance%20in%20front%20of%20the%20far%20more%20formidable%20combine%20of%20the%20mighty%20BJP%20and%20the%20ruling%20JD%28U%29.

But%20soon%20came%20the%20turning%20point%20when%20the%20young%20cricketer-turned-politician%20threw%20his%20%u2018googly%u2019%20by%20declaring%20that%20if%20his%20%u2018mahagathbandhan%u2019%20were%20to%20win%20the%20election%20he%20would%20create%2010%20lakh%20jobs.%26nbsp%3B

The%20hope%20that%20his%20promise%20lent%20was%20enough%20to%20surge%20the%20attendance%20of%20youth%20at%20his%20rallies.%20That%20was%20what%20left%20even%20the%20mighty%20Narendra%20Modi%20somewhat%20perplexed.%20He%20was%20unable%20to%20give%20any%20concrete%20reply%20to%20his%20job%20promise%20slogan%20and%20instead%20sought%20to%20focus%20more%20on%20the%20%u201Cmisrule%u201D%20and%20%u201Cjungle-raj%u201D%20under%20Laloo%20and%20Rabri%20Yadav.%26nbsp%3B

Quite%20interestingly%2C%20Tejashwi%20shunned%20joining%20issues%20with%20Modi%2C%20who%20was%20trying%20to%20trap%20the%20political%20novice%20into%20his%20own%20narrative.%20But%2C%20unmindful%20of%20the%20pointed%20charges%20and%20accusations%20made%20against%20his%20father%2C%20Tejashwi%20continued%20to%20concentrate%20on%20his%20own%20narrative%20of%20providing%20jobs%2C%20improving%20health%20facilities%20and%20ushering%20development.%26nbsp%3B

Confused%20for%20a%20while%2C%20Nitish%20eventually%20came%20up%20with%20his%20after-thought%20of%20announcing%20the%20creation%20of%2019%20lakh%20jobs.%20Modi%2C%20on%20the%20other%20hand%2C%20took%20to%20his%20well-orchestrated%20emotional%20appeals%20seeking%20to%20invoke%20the%20nationalist%20sentiment%20in%20the%20name%20of%20India-Pakistan%20or%20Hindu-Muslim.

As%20for%20Tejashwi%2C%20even%20more%20significantly%2C%20he%20also%20kept%20his%20mother%20or%20father%20completely%20off%20his%20poll%20campaign.%20Even%20their%20pictures%20were%20not%20visible%20on%20posters%2C%20hoardings%20or%20buntings%20nor%20did%20he%20make%20any%20mention%20about%20them%20in%20his%20speeches.%26nbsp%3B

He%20remained%20short%20and%20crisp%20%u2013%20focusing%20essentially%20on%20issues%20that%20would%20gel%20with%20the%20youth%20and%20the%20man%20on%20the%20street.%20Lakhs%20of%20migratory%20labour%20whom%20the%20pandemic%20compelled%20to%20return%20to%20their%20homes%20looked%20impressed.%20He%20had%20already%20managed%20to%20successfully%20broaden%20his%20party%u2019s%20base%20well%20beyond%20the%20Muslim-Yadav%20combine%20that%20his%20father%20had%20built.

No%20wonder%2C%20he%20could%20convert%20what%20was%20initially%20perceived%20as%20a%20one-sided%20election%2C%20into%20such%20a%20tight%20race%20that%20left%20even%20pollsters%20confused%20%u2013%20leading%20each%20one%20of%20the%20exit%20polls%20to%20give%20his%20%u2018mahagathbandhan%u2018%20a%20clear%20edge%20over%20NDA.%20Surely%20that%20led%20to%20much%20euphoria%20among%20the%20%u2018mahagathbandhan%u2019%20supporters.

Eventually%2C%20he%20lost%20the%20race.%20Yet%2C%20he%20is%20surely%20neither%20down%20nor%20out.%20Tejashwi%20Yadav%20may%20have%20to%20wait%20for%20another%20five%20years%20to%20once%20again%20dream%20of%20stepping%20into%20his%20parent%u2019s%20shoes.%20But%20still%2C%20he%20is%20the%20young%20political%20whiz-kid%20who%20will%20be%20really%20interesting%20to%20watch.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23TejashwiYadav%22%20data-user-id%3D%2242LF5CuYoO3t%22%20href%3D%22/topic/tejashwi-yadav%22%3E%23TejashwiYadav%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23RJD%22%20data-user-id%3D%22o8dyCkCeGRfw%22%20href%3D%22/topic/rjd%22%3E%23RJD%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23BiharElection2020%22%20data-user-id%3D%22BV2zd2QfB7Kx%22%20href%3D%22/topic/bihar-election-2020%22%3E%23BiharElection2020%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23NitishKumar%22%20data-user-id%3D%226qzS1kYkZwEl%22%20href%3D%22/topic/nitish-kumar%22%3E%23NitishKumar%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23NarendraModi%22%20data-user-id%3D%22jDp4x2dV65uK%22%20href%3D%22/topic/narendra-modi%22%3E%23NarendraModi%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23Mahagathbandhan%22%20data-user-id%3D%223pyaLI3baVOb%22%20href%3D%22/topic/mahagathbandhan%22%3E%23Mahagathbandhan%3C/a%3E%26nbsp%3B