After coming away empty-handed in the NDA's seat-sharing, RLJP chief Pashupati Paras has resigned from the Union Ministry. On Tuesday, Pashupati Paras announced his resignation at a press conference. He stated, 'There has been injustice to me and my party. We didn't receive a single seat.' Until his resignation, Pashupati Paras served as the Minister of Food Processing in the Modi Government.
It is reported that Pashupati Paras was unhappy with LJP (Ram Vilas) receiving five Lok Sabha seats in the seat-sharing agreement. His biggest grievance was that his party didn't receive a single seat, and that there were no discussions held with him before the announcement.
17 for BJP, 16 for JDU in Upcoming Elections
In fact, the seat-sharing announcement within Bihar's National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has been made. As per the arrangement, the BJP has reassumed the role of the elder brother. The BJP is set to contest 17 seats in Bihar, while the JDU has been allotted 16 seats. As for other allies, Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) got 5 seats, Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM and Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samta Party each received one seat. However, Pashupati Paras' RLJP did not receive any seats.
Pashupati Paras Had a Hunch
Pashupati Paras felt increasingly uncomfortable due to the preferential treatment being extended to his nephew Chirag's party by the BJP. Recently, he had suspected that his party wouldn't be allotted any seats in the NDA. Following this, he called for a meeting of the party's parliamentary board. After the meeting, he expressed, 'We request the national president of BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah to consider our five MPs. We will wait for the list.'
Will They Join Hands with INDIA Block?
Pashupati Paras made substantial efforts to secure a few NDA alliance seats. He warned, 'If we are not given proper respect, our party is independent and our doors are open. We are ready to go anywhere.' Now, with the seat allocations announced, his displeasure has become very evident. There are indications that he is also considering the possibility of joining hands with the INDIA block post-decision.
Chirag's Party to Contest These 5 Seats
Chirag Paswan has been allocated five Lok Sabha seats, which include Vaishali, Hajipur, Samastipur, Khagaria, and Jamui. Presently, the leaders of Pashupati Paras' party are the MPs for these seats. Following the demise of Ram Vilas Paswan, a split occurred within the LJP, leading to two factions; one led by Pashupati Paras and the other by Chirag Paswan. Chirag Paswan currently represents Jamui. In terms of the other LJP MPs, Hajipur is represented by Pashupati Paras, Mahboob Ali Kaiser from Khagaria, Veena Devi from Vaishali, and Prince Raj from Samastipur.
