After 5/5 feat, Chirag’s party sure of one berth, a second in bonus

Upbeat after its sterling performance in the just-concluded parliamentary elections in which it won all five seats it fought in Bihar, Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is sure of getting at least one berth in the new NDA Cabinet at the Centre and an additional berth in bonus, party leaders said.

LJP (RV) is a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which has won 292 seats in the polls, 20 more than the majority mark of 272 in the 543-member Lok Sabha, the Lower House of the Parliament.

Paswan’s party contested and won Jamui, Hajipur, Samastipur, Khagaria and Vaishali in Bihar, which sends 40 members to the Lok Sabha.

“We are assured of one berth. An additional berth as a minister of state would be a huge bonus,” said a senior party functionary, requesting anonymity.

Chirag Paswan himself refused to comment. “The decision will solely be of the Prime Minister,” he said after meeting chief minister Nitish Kumar along with his MPs at the latter’s official residence in Patna on Wednesday morning.

“My CM (Nitish) strongly stands with the NDA like a rock. NDA stands united. Nitish Kumar has played an important role in our performance as an alliance. We have handled Bihar very well and Nitish Kumar has a big role to play,” he said after meeting with CM.

Paswan often calls himself a loyal “Hanuman” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has warmly reciprocated in public, saying he sees the young MP as his son.

A year after the death of his father and political heavyweight Ram Vilas Paswan in October 2020, Chirag was faced with an existential crisis when his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras split their party LJP, which had won six seats in Bihar in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Five went with Paras while Chirag, who had won from Jamui, was left alone. Paras was subsequently made a union minister, but in the 2024 LS polls, BJP cast its lot with Chirag and allotted five seats to his party LJP (RV).

This time, Chirag Paswan himself contested from Hajipur, his late father pocket borough, and won by 1,70,105 votes, defeating RJD candidate Shiv Chandra Ram.