Demoralised after the humiliating defeat in Lok Sabha polls in Jharkhand where the RJD lost both Chatra and Palamau seats it had contested, the state unit believes that urgent steps are needed ahead of the Assembly election later this year.

Jharkhand RJD president Gautam Sagar Rana on Monday held a marathon closed-door meeting at the party office to understand the reasons for the rout.

“We need to revive our organisation in Jharkhand and workers at the district level need to be trained in organisational skills. We have to tell people how the divisive policies of the BJP is damaging the country,” party general secretary Kailash Yadav said.

The party blamed the EVMs for its defeat saying the gadgets were tampered and swapped by the BJP to win the polls.

The party also announced to launch a campaign to demand voting through ballot.

The meeting was attended by party’s Palamau and Chatra candidates Ghuran Ram and Subhash Yadav, former minister Satyanand Bhokta, former MLA Ramchandra Singh Chero and other office bearers.

The immediate concern of the party is poor health of its chief and former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad who is undergoing treatment at RIMS under judicial custody.

“We are facing a leadership crisis after our defeat in Bihar and Jharkhand where we suffered a massive electoral losses. We are feeling helpless without Lalu Prasad…had he been in good health, our situation could have been different,” said a senior RJD leader.

The party demanded the government to refer Lalu Prasad to some good hospital in the country since his health was deteriorating every day.

Stunned by the rout of his party, Lalu Prasad gave up lunch for two days after the declaration of results on May 23.

The RJD chief finally had lunch on Sunday after doctors, worried for his health, pleaded him that proper food intake was required for his medication to continue, Dr Umesh Prasad, head of the team looking after him, told PTI on Monday.