Tejashwi Yadav insists that when he does marry, his parents will choose the bride.
Tejashwi Yadav, the 28-year-old son of Lalu Yadav, is among Bihar's most eligible bachelors, many would say. To change that status, he has a condition - or three.
As leader of opposition, he won't give an inch but when it comes to marriage, Tejashwi respectfully says, "my elder brothers in politics first" - they are union minister Ram Vilas Paswan's older son Chirag Paswan, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's son Nishant and his brother Tej Pratap Yadav, 29.
The former cricketer also insists that when he does marry, his parents will choose the bride.
Chirag Paswan, 35, represents the Jamui parliamentary constituency and Tej Pratap, a first time legislator, was state Health Minister before the grand alliance of Nitish Kumar, Lalu Yadav and Congress crashed last year. Nishant Kumar has kept away from politics.
For now, Tejashwi is basking in recent
by-election wins for his RJD party, which he is heading in the absence of his
jailed father.
With his political profile soaring, there is renewed interest in his singlehood.
Recently, Bihar's road construction minister Nand Kishore Yadav claimed in the assembly that after taking over the ministry from Tejashwi, he investigated whether indeed there were over 40,000 proposals on the department's WhatsApp. But Nand Kishore Yadav says it was a false claim.
Rabri Devi, the mother of Tejashwi and Tej Pratap, has some ideas on prospective brides.
Last year, she caused a flutter on social media when she pronounced that she would only like traditional brides for her sons. "I don't want girls who go to cinemas and malls. They should be able to look after the house, respect elders and manage outside work, just like me," said Rabri Devi, a former Chief Minister of Bihar like her husband Lalu Yadav.
In November, Tej Pratap Yadav had urged Sushil Modi to find a suitable bride for him. But the light-hearted request was prefaced by much acrimony when Yadav junior threatened to disrupt the wedding of the Deputy Chief Minister's son by "beating up the groom's father".