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The senior leaders in LJP, feel that the heart of the crisis could be a potential seat-sharing rift ahead of the upcoming polls but the rift between the two partners widened when LJP's Chirag Paswan started criticizing Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over various factors.
Chirag Paswan, who represents the Jamui Parliamentary Seat was openly critical of Nitish Kumar in March for not allowing migrant laborers to return home.
On April 24th, accused the Nitish government of failing to provide ration cards to 1.45 million BPL beneficiaries. He put the Nitish government on the defensive, forcing it to say that the process was being speeded up.
In a recent statement, the LJP leader criticized the Nitish government for failing to handle the Covid-19 situation and maintaining law and order in the state. "Law and Order situation in the state has deteriorated to a great extent as compared to Nitish Kumar's first term. Nitish came to power in 2005 to improve the situation but it is worse than earlier and needs urgent improvement."
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Chirag, while holding a meeting of his office-bearers across the state through video conferencing, asked them to be prepared to fight the polls under any circumstance but also declared that his party was a partner of the NDA government at the Centre but not in Bihar.
“We are allies of the BJP and not the JD(U). I want to be the CM someday,” he said at the conference. “But it’s ok if the BJP has made Nitish Kumar the CM candidate for 2020 assembly polls.”
According to a report by The Print, JDU Minister Shyam Rajak responded, "Every party has its own agenda. But if Chirag Paswan has some personal grievances, he should meet CM Nitish Kumar and thrash it out."
JD(U) leaders argued that they have conveyed to BJP leaders that out of the 243 seats, JD(U) intends to contest at least 120, and any seat-sharing with LJP will be done by the BJP from its own share of seats.
LJP sacked district unit president
LJP has removed one of its office-bearers for declaring that the unity in NDA was “chhatani” (rock-like). On Wednesday, LJP’s national general secretary Shahnawaz Ahmad Kaifi announced the removal of the party’s Munger district chief Ramchandra Bharati, saying he had violated party guidelines.
“There was no need for you to make a statement on the NDA,” the letter by Kaifi to Bharti announced.
The party functionary was removed, after it was pointed out to him that such statements were against the party line and could be issued only by party chief Chirag Paswan.
The LJP has sought tickets for 41 assembly states in the election scheduled for later this year. In the 2015 assembly elections, it had contested in 45 seats but won a mere two in the 243-member House.
Dark Clouds loom on Nitish's fate
As NDA is dealing with the problem of a disgruntled LJP, Bihar is a high-stake election. It was the first state that stopped the winning streak of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2015. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar-led JD(U), which was earlier aligned with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-led Mahagathbandhan, is now with the NDA. Amid the changing alliance dynamics in the state, Nitish is eyeing his fourth term in the top office.
NDA led the alliance in Bihar has still not announced Nitish Kumar as CM candidate. Though Union Home Minister Amit Shah mentioned in its virtual rally that NDA will win Bihar elections with the two-third majority under the leadership of Nitish Kumar but there are high chances that Nitish Kumar’s fate could be decided in the seat-sharing.
In 2015 assembly elections, BJP contested on 157 seats while LJP contested on 42 and the rest went to smaller partners, while RJD-JD(U)-Congress were under the umbrella of Mahagathbandhan. In 2010 assembly elections, JD(U) and BJP were together, while RJD and the LJP were in an alliance, and Congress contested alone.