After 8 Years, Upendra Kushwaha's RLSP Returns to Nitish Kumar's JDU Fold After 8 Years, Upendra Kushwaha's RLSP Returns to Nitish Kumar's JDU Fold The RLSP-JDU merger comes two days after Upendra Kushwaha's party suffered a major split with 30 office bearers walking over to the RJD. It was eight years before, in 2013, that the Upendra Kushwaha-led RLSP split from JDU. Patna: Almost exactly eight years after he split away from the Janata Dal United (JDU), the Upendra Kushwaha-led Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) came a full circle today as it merged into Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's party. The returning leader has been named the parent party's Parliamentary Board Chairperson. The formalities of the merger were to be worked upon later through the day.