The Quint’s attempt to glorify convicted leader Lalu Yadav is an insult to the victims of his corruption and RJD’s ‘gundaraj’ in Bihar.

Lalu Prasad Yadav and his party Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) rule in Bihar have become synonymous with corruption, loot, backwardness and Gunda-raj. These are not mere accusations but the courts too have found Lalu Yadav guilty of corruption in countless cases. From fodder scams to disproportionate assets case to scams in tenders during his stint as the Railways Minister in the central government, Lalu has done it all. He has left no stone unturned in misusing taxpayer’s money for his own benefit and to fuel his caste based politics. The legacy which he left behind in Bihar was anarchy and a caste based toxic political environement which exists even till date in the state.

Lalu Prasad Yadav recently turned 70 and celebrations were held in his honour at the RJD party office by his ‘able’ sons and other followers. The occasion of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s birthday could have been used to show how it is impossible to evade Karma and law. The judiciary has made Lalu Yadav pay for his sins as he is currently serving jail term for fodder scams. But leftist and ‘secular’ media portal, The Quint chose to do otherwise.

The Quint, founded by Raghav Bahl, is known for peddling anti-India and leftist sentiments. The Quint excels in doing inflammatory pieces often hurting the sentiments of the majority. Its forte lies in making sensational news, no matter how baseless the sources are, an excellent example of how news reporting has now become news making. From publishing a fake story on Kubhushan Yadav, an Indian Navy officer trapped in Pakistan to glorifying Osama Bin Laden, it has done everything possible to glorify others while targeting India. The Quint wanted to wish Lalu Prasad Yadav in its own special way. After all, Lalu Yadav is, for the Quint, is the messiah of minority politics. The people behind The Quint made a video compilation of Lalu Yadav to portray him as a funny politician. The tweet reads “On @laluprasadrjd’s 70^th birthday, @TheQuint looks back at the many shades of Bihar’s most prominent leader through his stint in politics.”

The title in itself is wrong. Lalu Yadav was never the “most prominent leader” from Bihar. India’s first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad hailed from Bihar, Jay Prakash Narayan who went on to challenge and defeat Indira Gandhi at the national level had his roots in Bihar. Labelling Lalu Prasad Yadav as the most prominent politician from Bihar is ridiculing the residents who had to face problems under RJD’s rule in the state. Every Indian taxpayer whose money was scammed would feel bad about glorifying Lalu and his brand of politics. It would have made more sense if The Quint would have come up with a video or just an image listing all the scams committed by Lalu and family.

The Quint tried to ‘humanize’ him, tried to legitimize him and show a human angle to the convicted felon who might have been funny but he used it as a garb to hide his misdoings.  A media outlet or website is supposed to question injustice and misdoings of the politicians and not glorify them. Why The Quint would glorify a convict synonymous with corruption and thuggery is beyond common sense. But then again, this is The Quint. They have allegedly abetted the suicide of army man in the past, and definitely insulted Mangal Pandey (thereby insulting India’s First War of Independence) glorifying Lalu is not a big deal for a media house which calls itself unbiased and free of pressure.