Bihar Assembly Election 2020: Chirag Paswan has been a vocal critic of Nitish Kumar (archive)
Patna:
Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Chirag Paswan appeared to dismiss talks on Saturday about a break with Bihar’s chief minister Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal (United) (JD (U)) ahead of the elections in the Assembly later this year, stating “I have no problem with Nitish Kumar’s name as the face of the NDA.”
Mr. Paswan, whose criticism of the Chief Minister had raised doubts about the LJP’s struggle in the elections under Kumar’s leadership, also said: “… I agree with any Tom, Dick or Harry chosen by the BJP.”
However, he told NDTV that the alliance partners had to agree on a common minimum program that would include their “Bihar First and Bihari First” campaign. Paswan, 37, also said he was unwilling to work on Nitish Kumar’s “seven resolutions” compromise; this had been announced before the 2015 elections.
Many see the comments as a sign that young Paswan is ready, for now, to give up on his plan to go solo. Many have also taken them as a sign that he is unwilling to risk his ties to the BJP.
Chirag Paswan, whose father Ram Vilas Paswan is a Union Minister, has not shied away from taking photos in Nitish Kumar, in everything from flood management to the Covid pandemic and even the case of Sushant Singh Rajput.
He also joined the opposition, Rashtriya Janata Dal, in expressing concern over the holding of elections in the Assembly amid the coronavirus outbreak. However, he has been cautious in attacking the BJP.
Young Paswan has made his main ministerial ambitions clear; at a party meeting in June he said: “… I want to be the Chief Minister one day.”
His father has endorsed this work, stating: “I strongly support all of Chirag’s decisions,” and the LJP has authorized Chirag Paswan to decide to break with Nitish Kumar and JD (U) for this election.
LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan (left) has endorsed his son Chirag Paswan’s decision-making for the party.
That Nitish Kumar is upset with Chirag Paswan and the LJP’s apparent positioning was evident last month. JD (U) spokesperson KC Tyagi tried to distance the parties from each other, saying: “Our alliance is with BJP and the Lok Janshakti Party is in alliance with BJP.”
The BJP, which has had to quell rumors and reports that it could replace Nitish Kumar as the alliance leader in the state (and the top ministerial candidate), has started informal talks to share seats.
Top leaders, including former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who will lead this campaign, and BJP National Secretary General Bhupendra Yadav, met Nitish Kumar at his residence today, the sources said.
The election for the 243 seats in the Bihar assembly is scheduled for October-November. The term of the current assembly will end on November 29.
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