Confusion continues over Chirag's election campaign
Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) on Saturday rubbished the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) claim that Chirag would campaign for BJP candidates in the by-elections to the Mokama and Gopalganj assembly seats in Bihar. State unit chief of Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) Raju Tiwari said that till now no instructions have been received from National President Chirag regarding the by-elections. "We wonder how the BJP is making such a claim.
As far as we are aware, there has been no change in our stance of staying at an equal distance from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Grand Alliance," Tiwari was asked about BJP state president Sanjay Jaiswal's claim that he had said that Chirag is an "NDA ally" and he will campaign for BJP candidates in the by-polls to both the seats on November 3. However, Tiwari said, "Our national president will come to Bihar tomorrow. We will wait for his direction and act on his advice."
The Lok Janshakti Party, founded by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan, was led by Jamui MP Chirag until his rebellious uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, along with other party MPs, split the LJP. Paras had rejected Chirag's rebellion against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was an NDA ally at the time, during the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections. Paras being given a place in the Union Cabinet in the Central Government was one of the reasons for his nephew Chirag's displeasure.
Later the separated groups led by uncle and nephew were recognized as separate political parties. Paras remains in the NDA and has come out to campaign in support of BJP candidates Sonam Devi (Mokama) and Kusum Devi (Gopalganj). In contrast, Chirag has been vague about favoring a coalition of which his rebel uncle is a part, though he seems to be keeping his options open by not fielding any candidate.
Tejashwi Yadav considered the political heir of Chirag and RJD, was seen together before Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar broke ties with the BJP and formed a grand alliance government with other parties including the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad was of the view that Both the youth leaders should come together. Meanwhile, after breaking ties with Nitish Kumar, the BJP is trying hard to get the support of other parties outside the Grand Alliance. When asked about Jaiswal's claim, former state BJP president Union Minister Nityanand Rai said, "Our state president could not speak in vain. Let the lamp come tomorrow. You will know the truth.
