A sea of people, plus dignitaries led by Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad could be seen at the cremation site on the banks of the Ganges in the city that has witnessed the Lok Janshakti Party The Founders’ Long Journey: From a Young Socialist Party MLA in the late 1960s to serving under six prime ministers.
A large number of followers had come to Digha ghat from his pocket quarter Hajipur, located just across the river, which Paswan he had nurtured since his debut at Lok Sabha in 1977 when he won with a record margin.
He gave the seat to his younger brother Pashupati Kumar Paras last year and chose the Rajya Sabha route to re-enter Parliament.
The sight of commoners standing a block away, teary-eyed and eager for a last glimpse of their leader, unaware of the threat posed by the COVID pandemic and the reprimands of security personnel eager to impose social distancing, bear witness to the popularity of the man, known as an “ajaat shatru” (one without enemies) in Bihar’s cruel politics.
Many boarded a steamer anchored nearby, while an even larger number could be seen standing precariously on the decrepit embankment built along the river after the administration prevented them from crowding the ghat.
Paswan he had given his last breath in a New Delhi hospital on Thursday night and his body was brought here on Friday.
The dignitaries offered their tributes at the airport and also, later, at the Vidhan Sabha facility.
The body was carried for the last rites to Janardan Ghat in the town of Digha in a massive procession from his residence in Shri Krishna Puri, about 3 km away.
The bungalow of Paswan, who kept his doors open to all despite the high positions he held for much of his political career, remained packed with visitors, many of them ordinary citizens whom the leader had helped find a job, getting a relative seriously ill treated in a world-class medical facility, or with financial aid that made the marriage of his daughters possible.
Many also recalled the contributions made by Paswan As Minister: Hajipur became a zonal headquarters of the railways, mobile phones became affordable, and increased efficiency in the public distribution system was crucial during the national shutdown.
The last rites were performed by PaswanChirag’s son and political heir, who has risked a lot by deciding to open a lonely furrow in the assembly elections that are days away.
Amid the deafening roars of “Ram Vilas Paswan love rahein, “Chirag, in knee-length dhoti and a white sheet around his shoulders, lit the funeral pyre.
Reena Paswan, who like her husband Ram Vilas was always a perfect host, watched the ceremony from a distance, the pain on her face hidden with her mask and dupatta.
The LJP founders, other family members, who run the party’s affairs together with Chirag, also stood around the pyre and helped the son complete the rituals.
Despised by his opponents for being a “mausam vaigyanik” (weather vane), who nonetheless testifies to his cunning in gauging the mood of the public, PaswanEntering politics was an example of choosing adventure over stagnation that often accompanies security.
“In 1969, I was elected as an MLA around the same time that I qualified for the position of Deputy Superintendent of Police. One of my friends asked me what you would like to be, in a government servant or in the government itself. That is how my journey began. political ” Paswan she had said famously.
The journalists, with whom the Union minister had been the favorite, were unanimous in the belief that “there will hardly be another like him who is left without bragging despite enjoying so much power.”
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