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ShareHe was the giant killer deemed as big as David who had felled Goliath in the immortal Biblical story, no less. But having defeated Indira Gandhi, in the aftermath of the Emergency, Raj Narain soon (and sadly) showed himself to be no more than a country bumpkin interested in only his 15 seconds of public adulation rather than changing the profile of Indian politics.
Ergo Raj Narain, otherwise more famous as a sidekick of Charan Singh (who was prime minister fleetingly) earned great fame for his conquest, more notoriety for his idiocy, and ultimately faded out quicker than the Janata Party of which he was a such crucial element to begin with.
That said, I don't think either Mamata Banerjee or Lalu Prasad Yadav are as banal or hollow as Raj Narain turned out to be. Both have spent more time in the hurly burly of India's parliamentary life, and willy nilly have had a greater say in how we lead our lives -- and not just when travelling by train.
Of course both are obviously into theatrics and melodrama, but not without fun or substance. Lalu Prasad's deliberated 'rustic' approach has not only kept us entertained, but also clued into what the 'non-urban' India is thinking. It must be admitted, however, that this did not quite work to his advantage in the recent general elections, but it was engrossing nonetheless.
In a different sort of way, this is also true of Mamata Banerjee, though her feisty political profile has been different from Lalu's easygoing charm and won her power again. While in keeping with her image she has been indignant and sanctimonious, she has actually been appealing to the same constituency as Yadav.
All things considered, however, Lalu Yadav's protests that Mamata has rehashed his budget and passed it off as her own has squealing of sour grapes. Lalu has many things to his credit, including making the Railways profitable. But he never did say, as Mamata Banerjee has vouched, that the toilets in train will be clean like never before.
