Chirag casts an eye on four JD(U) seats, Giriraj’s Begusarai

Chirag Paswan has announced the names of 11 functionaries as party in-charge for as many Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, including four held by Bihar chief minister’s Janata Dal (United) and Begusarai, which is currently held by BJP heavyweight and union minister Giriraj Singh.

Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas) chief Chirag Paswan has announced the names of 11 functionaries as party in-charge for as many Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, including four held by Bihar chief minister’s Janata Dal (United) and Begusarai, which is currently held by BJP heavyweight and union minister Giriraj Singh — a move that could potentially complicate the seat-sharing exercise for the upcoming parliamentary polls within the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Chirag Paswan addresses a rally at Hajipur. (HT)

In 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the erstwhile LJP, founded by Chirag Paswan’s father Ram Vilas Paswan, had contested and won six seats in Bihar as part of the NDA.

However, in 2021, LJP suffered a vertical split, with Chirag Paswan’s estranged uncle and Hajipur MP Pashupati Kumar Paras forming another party with five MPs, including himself, and securing a berth for himself in the union cabinet.

The seats for which the LJP-R has announced party in-charge include Hajipur, currently held by Paras, who now heads Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP) and is firm on contesting from there. Hajipur was a pocket borough of (late) Ram Vilas Paswan, the former union minister who won the seat several times, often with huge margins.

However, in 2020 Bihar assembly elections, LJP fell out with JD(U) over seat sharing and decided to contest 137 seats, mostly against Nitish Kumar’s party. Though it could win just one seat and finished second on nine, LJP was seen as the factor behind JD(U) getting relegated to the third position among political parties in terms of seats won.

Since then, Chirag Pawan and Nitish Kumar have no love lost between them.

The NDA also has to contend with other smaller allies like HAM-S of former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi and RLSP of former union minister Upendra Kushwaha, who are also unsure of their share of seats in the alliance after JD(U)’s re-entry.

“By staking claim on four JD(U) seats, LJP-R has made its intentions clear to throw a big challenge for BJP, the biggest party in the NDA. How much JD(U), a late entrant, is accommodated remains to be seen, but one thing is clear that it cannot be like 2019,” said political analyst Nawal Kishore Choudhary.

BJP and JD(U) leaders weren’t immediately available for their response.