"Will now realise how it feels...": Chirag Paswan takes dig at uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras

Patna (Bihar) [India], October 19 (ANI): Chirag Paswan on Sunday took a subtle dig at his uncle, Pashupati Kumar Paras, leader of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP), saying that Paras will now realise what it feels like to be cornered in an alliance.
In an exclusive interview with ANI, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president and Union Minister Chirag Paswan mentioned that during the LJP split in 2020, it had become impossible for his faction to remain within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at that time.
"In 2020, I couldn't stay in the NDA, and my party decided to quit the alliance. My uncle, Pashupati Kumar Paras, would now have realised that when you are cornered in an alliance to the extent that you have no alternative, you are left with the option of contesting elections alone," Paswan told ANI.
Paswan's comment implies that his own party has had to navigate complex alliance politics effectively, while suggesting that Paras' RLJP might face challenges in its own alliances.
Chirag Paswan's comments follow Pashupati Kumar Paras' announcement of contesting the Bihar elections independently on Saturday. He stated that his party is hoping to win a "good number of seats" in the first phase.
Paswan said that he had the opportunity to join the Mahagathbandhan during the 2020 assembly elections, but his loyalty to Prime Minister Narendra Modi prevented him from taking that step.
"Today, when his party is contesting alone, he would have realised that when you are not given any importance in an alliance, you have no choice but to go solo. I had the choice to join the Mahagathbandhan, but my commitment to PM Modi was such that even after quitting the alliance, I did not field my party's candidates against the BJP," he said.
Earlier, Chirag Paswan alleged that the Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)) played a role in engineering the split within the LJP. The split resulted in two factions: one led by Chirag Paswan and the other by Pashupati Kumar Paras.
The LJP (RV) chief further explained that his party only contested against the Janata Dal (United) in 2020, which led to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's anger, something Paswan described as "understandable."
He added that all issues between them have now been resolved and that his party is contesting the 2025 elections with the goal of ensuring Nitish Kumar's return as Chief Minister of Bihar.
Following the split in Lok Janshakti Party during the 2020 Bihar elections, Chirag Paswan parted ways with the National Democratic Alliance and fielded candidates against JD(U) but not against the Bharatiya Janata Party.
"I had no other option but to field candidates against JD(U), which caused them to suffer losses. The anger over this was entirely justifiable, and the anger of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar was understandable. Now, all the concerns between me and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar have been resolved. For the first time, my party is contesting elections to ensure Nitish Kumar becomes the Chief Minister of Bihar," Paswan said.
Criticising the Mahagathbandhan, Paswan questioned their agenda and visibility in the ongoing polls, alleging that opposition leaders who once claimed deep concern for Bihar have now disappeared. He pointed out that the alliance has failed to finalise its seat-sharing arrangements and is even fielding candidates against each other.
"Those who claimed to care so much about Bihar and spent days roaming around trying to mislead people -- where are they now? It's been quite some time since the elections were announced, and nominations for the first phase are already over. I want to ask where is Rahul Gandhi? Suddenly, they seem to have completely forgotten Bihar. They haven't even managed to finalise their alliance. I'm surprised at the Leader of the Opposition from Bihar even the JMM has parted ways, and they are now contesting against each other," Paswan said.
Following the death of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) founder Ram Vilas Paswan in 2020, tensions emerged between Chirag Paswan and Pashupati Kumar Paras over the party's leadership and control. Subsequently, five of the six LJP Lok Sabha MPs sided with Paras, choosing him as their leader the same year.
In June 2021, the party formally split into two factions: the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), led by Chirag Paswan, and the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party, headed by Pashupati Kumar Paras. While Pashupati Paras was part of the National Democratic Alliance in the 2020 Bihar elections, Chirag Paswan contested the election independently and parted ways with the NDA.
Chirag Paswan later rejoined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, where his party achieved a clean sweep, winning all five seats it contested in Bihar. In contrast, Paras did not contest the polls.
The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) announced its first list of 14 candidates for the Bihar elections on October 14 and later released its second list of 15 candidates on October 16.
The 2025 Bihar Elections will have the main contest between the National Democratic Alliance and the Mahagathbandhan.
NDA includes the Bharatiya Janata Party, Janata Dal (United), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha, meanwhile the Mahagathbandhan led by Rashtriya Janata Dal include Congress party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP).
Additionally, Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj has also staked claims on all 243 seats of the state.
Meanwhile, polling in the Bihar 2025 elections is scheduled to take place on November 6 and 11, respectively, while the results will be declared on November 14. (ANI)