Chirag Paswan seeks to steal Nitish Kumar's thunder in Bihar Assembly polls

BJP leadership might have a role in making Chief Minister's position uneasy

- BY TIRTHANKAR MITRA

Bihar seems to have a penchant for being in the news be it owing to JP's call of total revolution or the Bhagalpur blindings or the fodder scam. The state finds itself in the news again as a new leader whose political party is part of the NDA coalition has thrown his hat in the ring for the chief minister's post, just five months before the crucial elections.

A claimant to crown is Chirag Paswan who floated Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) in 2021 after the passing of his father, Ram Vilas Paswan. Chirag who split the party is Union minister for food processing in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who kicked off the poll campaign for NDA in Bihar on May 29 and May 30 this year.

Chirag's political ambition will upset the apple cart of sitting chief minister Nitish Kumar. Kumar's winning touch seems to be fading since the last election though he was the key leader whose alliance with BJP is being discussed in BJP circles and the state saffron leaders are exploring other possibilities to head the NDS government if the alliance wins in October/November polls.

Extreme Backward Castes (Maha Dalit) and Pasmanda Muslims (backward Muslims) were the twin props which helped Kumar twice to sail to victory. But Kumar-led JD(U) won only in 43 seats in 2020 elections which saw BJP emerging numerically superior with 74 seats