Union Minister Pashupati Paras resigned on Tuesday morning, withdrawing his Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP) from the BJP-led national alliance. This decision comes after the BJP confirmed a seat-sharing agreement with Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party, Mr. Paras’ nephew.
The BJP-LJP deal, a component of a larger arrangement for Bihar’s upcoming Lok Sabha election, effectively sidelines Mr. Paras’ party. The RLJP received zero seats, while Chirag Paswan’s LJP was allocated five seats, including the Hajipur constituency, previously held by Mr. Paras in the 2019 election.
Expressing gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Paras cited injustice faced by his party as the reason for his resignation. He remained non-committal regarding potential deals with the opposition, whether at the state-level Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal alliance or with the national-level INDIA bloc led by the Congress.
Mr. Paras affirmed that RLJP would contest the Hajipur seat. Last week, amid reports of concluded Bihar deals with the BJP and his perceived isolation, he asserted RLJP’s intention to contest seats they previously won, hinting at a potential pact within the opposition.
Previously victorious in Hajipur as a Lok Janshakti Party member, Mr. Paras was part of the party led by Ram Vilas Paswan, Chirag Paswan’s father.
Ram Vilas Paswan, an eight-time MP from Hajipur, passed away in October 2020. His party’s alignment with Chirag Paswan’s faction underscores the latter’s perceived control over the community vote, with the Paswans constituting around six percent of Bihar’s electorate.
However, a potential challenge for the BJP arises from the strained relationship between Chirag Paswan and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), the other significant partner in Bihar’s coalition.
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