Fact Check: Rift in Mahagathbandhan - Mukesh Sahani calls Tejaswi Yadav arrogant? No, here are the facts

The Model Code of Conduct comes into force, with the Election Commission (EC) announcing dates of the Bihar assembly polls scheduled to be held in two phases on November 6 and 11, with vote counting on November 14.

Meanwhile, a video of Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) leader Mukesh Sahani, an alliance partner in the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan in Bihar, has been circulating on social media. In the video, Sahani criticises Tejashwi Yadav, calling him arrogant for being born the son of a Chief Minister. It also shows Sahani saying that Yadav has never had to struggle on his own. The video is being shared to claim rift within the alliance ahead of the state’s upcoming polls.

Sharing the video, an X user wrote, “A Slap on the Face of Ninth Fail Tejaswi Yadav, Who Looks Like a Rhino. Mukesh Sahni said that Tejaswi Yadav has arrogance for being the son of a Chief Minister; he has no struggle of his own. He played cricket, so he carried water; he has done nothing on his own strength.” (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found the claim to be misleading, as the video is from 2020, when Sahani was an alliance partner of the BJP’s National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

A reverse image search of the video’s keyframes led to an over seven-minute interview of Sahani on ABP News, published on October 8, 2020. The viral clip appears in this interview after a 5-minute timestamp. This confirms that the Sahani spoke against Tejasswi Yadav, calling him arrogant ahead of the 2020 Bihar assembly polls, not the upcoming 2025 polls.

According to the interview, Sahani was also part of the Mahagathbandhan at that time, comprising the Congress, RJD, and other smaller parties. However, due to a dispute over seat sharing and the deputy CM post, he had switched to the NDA.

We also found that The Times of India reported in October 2020 that Sahani quit the Mahagathbandhan over a seat-sharing dispute and switched to the NDA before the 2020 assembly polls.

When did Sahani rejoin Mahagathbandhan?

According to a March 2022 report by The Indian Express, all three MLAs from VIP switched allegiance to the BJP, making it the single largest party in the Bihar Legislative Assembly. The BJP argued that since Sahani's MLAs had joined their party, he was no longer part of the NDA and should therefore step down as minister. At the BJP's demand, Nitish Kumar removed Mukesh Sahani from his post as Animal Husbandry and Fisheries Minister.

Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Sahani rejoined the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan in the state. His Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) was allotted three Lok Sabha seats: Gopalganj, Jhanjharpur, and East Champaran to contest, as reported by India Today and Hindustan Times in April 2024.

Therefore, we conclude that the viral clip of Mukesh Sahani is from 2020 and does not depict a rift in Mahagathbandhan ahead of the 2025 Bihar assembly polls.