Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras resigned on March 19 and accused the BJP of doing “injustice” with his Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party by not including it in the seat-sharing deal with allies for the Lok Sabha election in Bihar. The announcement came at a press conference a day after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance announced its seat-sharing pact and gave five seats to Mr. Paras’s nephew Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas).
Mr. Paras may join the Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal and contest the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Hajipur (reserved) from where he is a sitting MP.
“I was waiting for the announcement of seat sharing among the NDA allies which was announced on March 18. I’ve been grateful to the Prime Minister but my party and I faced injustice. As such, I am resigning as Minister from the Union cabinet,” Mr. Paras told mediapersons in Delhi.
When asked of his plans given these developments, Mr. Paras quickly added, “I will decide this after discussions with party leaders and workers.”
However, the buzz in the political circles is that Mr. Paras may be joining the Indian National Development Inclusive Alliance bloc in Bihar and might contest the Parliamentary election from his Lok Sabha seat of Hajipur (reserved) against nephew Mr. Chirag Paswan.
After the death of LJP founder Ram Vilas Paswan in October 2020, the party split in June 2021 when uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras walked out of the party along with four other MPs. The undivided LJP had won six LS seats in the 2019 General Election. Mr. Chirag Paswan, the MP from Jamui (reserved) seat, and son of Ram Vilas Paswan, was left alone. Later, his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras named his party as RLJP while his nephew led the LJP (Ram Vilas) faction. Mr. Paras was the Union Minister of Food Processing Industries and was desirous to contest his sitting Hajipur parliamentary seat for long. However, after joining hands with the BJP, Mr. Chirag Paswan too had announced to contest from the same Hajipur (reserved) seat “to retain political legacy of his father late Ram Vilas Paswan”.
Two RLJP MPs, Veena Devi (Vaishali) and Mehboob Ali Kaiser (Khagaria), had gone to meet Mr. Chirag Paswan and “expressed their willing ness to contest the upcoming LS poll from their respective seats from LJP (Ram Vilas)”. One more RLJP MP, Chandan Singh (Nawada), is also said to be in touch with LJP (Ram Vilas).
Meanwhile, in another significant political development in the neighbouring Jharkhand, Sita Soren, sister-in-law of former Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) legislator, resigned from the party and joined the BJP in Delhi in the presence of the party’s national general secretary Vinod Tawde and Jharkhand in-charge Laxmikant Bajpai.
Ms. Soren was the JMM MLA from Jama in Dumka district. She is wife of Durga Soren, the late son of JMM chief Shibu Soren.
“I was feeling neglected and isolated in the party. I have also become aware of a conspiracy being hatched against me and my family. I’m left with no choice but to tender my resignation,” Ms. Soren alleged.
