``I am prepared to perish at the scaffold at the hands of BJP-Samata Party combine which wants to make tribal south Bihar a colony of the RSS. A partition in my lifetime is unthinkable,'' he said a meeting of RJD legislature party here.

It should be recalled that it was the selfsame Yadav who piloted a resolution on creation of a separate Jharkhand to get JMM-S support after a split in ruling Janata Dal in 1997 to prop up the minority government of his wife Rabri Devi. The resolution was unanimously adopted by the state assembly.

His statement today is in line with his assertion at the state assembly as Janata Dal chief minister more than a year ago when he had said Jharkhand could be formed only on my dead body.

``We are still agreeable to Jharkhand state comprisingcontiguous tribal districts of Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa... the very philosophy of Jharkhand statehood is this and not Vananchal comprising only 18 states of Bihar,'' he told media persons. ``We have always favoured a greater Jharkhand,'' he added.

Yadav's statement, made barely four days before the special session of the state assembly to discuss Bihar Reorganisation (Vananchal) Bill, 1998, sent by president K R Narayanan for seeking its opinion, has put a big question mark on its adoption.

Replying to a fusillade of questions, he admitted that RJD might lose the support of JMM-S because of its stand now against a separate state.

Several other parties like the Congress also stood divided on the issue of bifurcation of the state, he said.

``But we don't care.... we will sacrifice our government and our lives,'' he said, adding his party would launch ``Bihar Bachao Andolan'' (save Bihar movement) from tomorrow.

He declined to give details of the proposed movement saying ``you willsee everything... see how the things turn out.''

BJP has reacted sharply to Yadav's assertion describing it as ``political fraud''.

``It has now become clear that the resolution was passed by the state assembly to keep JMM-S and Congress, both votaries of separate state, in good humour.... now the two parties should make their stand clear on the issue of supporting the Rabri government,'' said Leader of Opposition Sushil Kumar Modi.

BJP unfazed

BJP today said there was no question of going back on the creation of Vananchal in Bihar. ``Laloo is in no position to say anything about Vananchal. The proposal has been made and the people have accepted it,'' party general secretary Venkaiah Naidu told media persons here when asked about Laloo Prasad's Opposition to its creation.