The battle between uncle and nephew in Bihar has come to the forefront. Pashupati Paras, Chirag's uncle, resigned from the central cabinet after being denied a Lok Sabha seat. As of now, he has not announced whether he will remain a part of the NDA, but opposition offers are streaming in. Here's a look at who Pashupati Kumar Paras is and what sparks the uncle-nephew conflict?
Pashupati Kumar Paras previously served as the Minister of Food Processing Industries at the centre. Unfortunately, his party missed out on securing a Lok Sabha seat within the NDA. A day later, he publicly declared his resignation at a press conference in Delhi.
Read More: Pashupati Paras Resigns: Inside Pashupati Paras's reasons for leaving the Ministerial post
Pashupati Paras stated, "Yesterday, the NDA coalition released a list of 40 candidates for Bihar's Lok Sabha. Our party had five MPs. I have worked with full sincerity. We and our allied party were wronged. I resign from the post of the central minister."
The tussle over the Hajipur seat between uncle and nephew
The feud between the uncle and nephew revolves around the Hajipur seat, from where Chirag Paswan's father, Ram Vilas Paswan, played a long political innings. Now, Chirag wants to lead from this seat, but the uncle was not in agreement. The two have been at odds over this seat for some time.
In 2019, Paras divided the LJP
It's noteworthy that in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the then united Lok Janshakti Party won six seats. However, Pashupati Paras aligned himself with the BJP and split the party into two, making his way into the ministry. Now, in a reverse twist, the BJP has flipped the game around and granted Chirag Paswan a spot within the NDA.
Read More: Bihar Politics: Paras quits his ministerial role over seat allocation, Bihar's Deputy CM comments on Paras's resignation
HAM-RLM granted one seat each
There are claims that the BJP has not discussed seat sharing with Pashupati Kumar Paras's LJP faction. Bihar BJP President Samrat Choudhary confirmed, "Talks with him (Paras) are ongoing." Once negotiations on seat sharing concluded, it became clear that the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) led by Jitan Ram Manjhi and the Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) would contest from one seat each.
Who is Pashupati Kumar Paras?
Pashupati Kumar Paras, the younger brother of Ram Vilas Paswan, is currently the MP from Hajipur. His dispute with Chirag over the party leadership post became public following Ram Vilas Paswan's demise. While devising a plan to split his own party, Paras's political maneuvering isolated Chirag. Notably, Paras had held the position of Minister for Animal and Fish Resources in the Bihar government, had been the state president of the Lok Janshakti Party in Bihar, and in June 2021, was elected as the National President of the Lok Janshakti Party, taking Chirag Paswan's place. He has been at the helm of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party since the split after 2021.
