"I Married Into Christian Family... ": Tejashwi Yadav's Reminder On Religion

'I don't believe in religious and caste divides...', RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav told NDTV in an exclusive interview Thursday, pointing to his marriage to a Christian woman to stress his secular credentials.

"We believe in Ganga-Jamuna tehzeeb," the ex-Bihar Deputy Chief Minister said.

Mr Yadav - who will lead his RJD's charge in the election later this year, an election he hopes will return his father Lalu Prasad Yadav's party to power, and cement his status as a senior opposition figure - also pointed to his wearing a skull cap and a tilak at a recent Iftaar function.

In a wide-ranging chat with NDTV, the Bihar leader also spoke about changes to Waqf laws, which govern how Muslim charitable properties are managed in this country.

The centre proposed 44 alterations to these laws, including nominating non-Muslim members to the boards and limiting donations to those from 'practicing' members of the community.

The proposals triggered furious protests from the opposition, including Mr Yadav's RJD.

READ | Cabinet Clears 14 Waqf Bill Changes Amid Row Over 'Bias' In House Panel

Eventually a joint parliamentary committee (after yet more opposition protests) whittled the changes down to 23, and, last month, the union cabinet approved 14 of them.

Speaking to NDTV, Mr Yadav said, "The Waqf board bill is unconstitutional... it is targeted against the minority community", and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to resolve unemployment problems plaguing Bihar and the rest of the country. "Instead he is working to divide society..."

"They always bring laws to instigate division in the society," he said, pointing out other contentious laws proposed by the Modi government, such as the Citizenship Amendment Act.

"But the people of Bihar are very smart... they understand these designs," he said.

Asked about the future of his RJD's alliance with the Congress - the two are set to contest the election later this year together - Mr Yadav said the partnership would continue even if there is no clarity, at this stage, about who will be the combined chief ministerial face/candidate.

The RJD emerged the big winner in the last election, securing 75 of the state's 235 seats. But the Congress picked up 19 (eight fewer than last time), meaning the mahagathbandhan alliance fell short of the majority mark of 122. The BJP scored 74 and Nitish Kumar's JDU got 43.

Despite having fewer seats, Nitish Kumar retained the Chief Minister's post, first with the mahagathbandan and then with the BJP, after he crossed over in January last year.

When the JDU and RJD were allied Mr Yadav was the Deputy Chief Minister, but the target has always been a step further - to become Chief Minister and emulate his father.

"We will discuss this as and when situation arises... they are our alliance partners," he said, waving away follow-ups about possible concerns if he is not projected as the alliance's face.

"We will see when it happens. First, we want to first defeat the National Democratic Alliance (the BJP-led coalition) in Bihar... it all depends on the blessings of people," he said. But then he also threw in a subtle reminder to the Congress, declaring, "My supporters want this."

Moving on to the RJD's election prep, Mr Yadav told NDTV there are issues he intends to flag during the campaign, including the overall lack of development in the state. Specific areas, he said, are unemployment, health, and public welfare. "There are so many things to be done..."