Why BJP is going all out to keep Chirag Paswan in Bihar

Chirag Paswan managed to maintain his stance and did not bother to warm up to Nitish Kumar (File Photo)

New Delhi:

When it comes to Chirag Paswan contesting against his uncle Pashupati Paras in Bihar, the BJP has finally chosen just weeks before the national elections position. Even if it means upsetting Nitish Kumar, who returned to NDA after his latest alliance switch.

The BJP conceded Chirag Paswan’s claim to five seats, including the crucial Hajipur seat that had elected his father Ram Vilas seven times Ram Vilas Paswan, along with his estranged uncle Pashupati Paras, won the last Lok Sabha polls in 2019.

The BJP is no longer playing the role of Nitish Kumar’s sidekick in Bihar and is taking the lead in the NDA fight in the state. The party will contest 17 of Bihar’s 40 seats, with Nitish Kumar’s party contesting 16 and Chirag Paswan’s BJP LJP will contest on 5 seats and Upendra Kushwaha and Jitan Ram Manjhi will contest on one seat each.

Pashupati Paras defies nephew Chirag Paswan and splits LJP in 2021 with Haryana’s Dushyant Chau Dushyant Chautala joins the ranks of allies abandoned by the BJP.

This all came about after tough negotiations, during which Chirag Paswan even seemed to be flirting with Lalu Yadav’s RJD. He claims the opposition has offered him eight seats. Chirag Paswan, however, insisted on supporting the BJP and ultimately chose five.

In Bihar, the majority of the vote belongs to Nitish Kumar’s party, Lalu Yadav’s party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), all in double digits. Paswan’s votes, which accounted for six per cent of the vote share, were largely cast for Chirag Paswan, whose father Ram Vilas Paswan is the most influential leader of the community.

The BJP has made it clear that it considers Chirag Paswan the true political heir to his father’s base, a course correction after backing Pashupati Paras’ move to split the party in 2021. Nitish Kumar, whose acrimony with Chirag Paswan is legendary, orchestrated the split, and the BJP who backed it.

Chirag Paswan immediately took to the streets and within a few months it became clear to everyone, including the Bihar BJP, that he controlled Paswan’s votes. So after Nitish Kumar ditched the party the following year, the BJP reached out to Chirag Paswan – despite the entry of his estranged uncle Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet – and ensuring he campaigned extensively for him in every by-election.

Chirag Paswan has managed to maintain his stance and has not bothered to warm up to Nitish Kumar in the weeks since he returned to the NDA in January. Chirag Paswan has not called Nitish Kumar till now. Regardless, the BJP leadership effectively crushed Pashupati Paras and his faction by acknowledging his demands during seat negotiations.