Patna: It’s an uncle-nephew fight that shows no sign of relenting for close to three years. Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan first clashed swords over claiming the legacy of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) founder Ram Vilas Paswan. The “right” to contest from Hajipur is now the latest flashpoint for the leaders of the LJP’s two factions.
What flared up the underlying tension was Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president J.P. Nadda’s invite to Chirag Paswan to a meeting of NDA allies in Delhi. Both Paras and Chirag are keen to contest from Hajipur parliamentary constituency — the stronghold of Chirag’s late father Ram Vilas Paswan — in 2024.
“Who is Chirag Paswan? I am the sitting MP of Hajipur and I will contest the seat again and win. There can be no compromise on this,” Pashupati Paras told ThePrint Sunday, adding that he had received an invitation to attend the meeting from the BJP president.
In 2019, Pashupati Paras had won from Hajipur while Chirag emerged winner from Jamui.
The Union Minister said he was an ally of the BJP, not Chirag Paswan. “Chirag after 2020 is yet to criticise the RJD,” he alleged, adding that the people of Jamui have elected Chirag twice in 2014 and 2019. “Why does he want to shift to Hajipur?”
On his part, Chirag Paswan is reluctant to let go of Hajipur, saying his father wanted him to contest from there.
“Hajipur is the Karambhoomi of his father. How can a son leave his father’s Karambhoomi? According to Hindu tradition the inheritance goes to the son,” LJP (Ram Vilas) spokesperson Ashraf Ansari told ThePrint.
He recalled that while Ram Vilas Paswan was alive in 2019, Paras was extremely reluctant to contest from Hajipur. “Ever since he split the party, Parasji has seldom visited Hajipur and a great resentment prevails among the people of Hajipur against his betrayal. But our alliance is with the BJP,” Ashraf said, insisting that Chirag would contest from Hajipur.
श्री @iChiragPaswan जी से दिल्ली में भेंट हुई। उन्होंने माननीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के नेतृत्व वाले NDA गठबंधन में शामिल होने का निर्णय लिया है। मैं उनका NDA परिवार में स्वागत करता हूँ। pic.twitter.com/vwU67B6w6H
— Jagat Prakash Nadda (@JPNadda) July 17, 2023
Chirag Paswan is now seemingly in a stronger position as BJP chief J.P. Nadda announced Monday evening that the LJP (Ram Vilas) leader has decided to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Also Read: ‘For the betterment of Bihar’ — Chirag Paswan promises to support BJP in upcoming by-polls
Significance of Hajipur
Situated in Vaishali district of Bihar, Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency is reserved for candidates belonging to the scheduled castes. Hajipur and Ram Vilas Paswan were synonymous with each other, as the late leader won eight times from 1977 to 2014. He had lost to Ram Sundar Das in 2009 and opted out of the electoral race in 2019 due to his failing health.
The nine-time Lok Sabha MP had a special bond with people of Hajipur, making it a zonal headquarters of East Central Railway apart from bringing in projects including the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) in Hajipur industrial area.
Not even RJD chief Lalu Prasad was able to defeat him from Hajipur. The unveiling of his statue last year brought a huge crowd. Hajipur is not just another seat for the Paswan family. It is about inheritance of his legacy — which Chirag and Paswan are fighting for.
The BJP has been sweating it out to broker peace between the uncle and the nephew. Union minister Nityanand Rai met Chirag in Patna on 9 July and again two days later in Delhi. BJP chief Nadda had a talk with the Jamui MP. On Saturday evening, Union minister Amit Shah had a long talk with Chirag.
“Our demand is that the BJP should specify the number and seats which will be given to us. That has not been cleared by the BJP. However, the talks appear to be moving in the right direction,” said a LJP (Ram Vilas) source.
Initially the BJP had wanted both uncle and nephew to merge. But that proposal was shot down by both factions. Now the BJP is searching for an `amicable’ solution so that they can keep both factions in its camp.
During the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the NDA seat sharing saw the BJP and the JD(U) get 17 seats each. The remaining six seats of Bihar went to the LJP. But this time around, Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) is not around in the NDA camp.
Chirag, according to party sources, wants to increase its share of seats now that the JD(U) is no longer in the NDA.
“If we have to choose between Paras and Chirag, the latter will get the priority. Chirag is the crowd puller and has undoubtedly inherited the political legacy of late Ram Vilas Paswan,” a senior BJP state leader.
The BJP leader admitted that aiding the split of the LJP in 2021 was a “mistake”.
The BJP has earlier denied its role in engineering the split in the Bihar-based party and had earlier maintained that it was an “internal matter”. Five of the LJP’s six Lok Sabha MPs deserted Chirag and joined hands with Pashupati Paras in June, 2021. Paras was then accommodated in the Union Cabinet in July that year.
(Edited by Tony Rai)