NEW DELHI: Chirag Paswan, leader of the Lok Janshakti Party-Rebels (LJP-R), has passed on the political legacy to his brother-in-law, Arun Bharti, in Jamui after emerging victorious in the battle for the Hajipur constituency against his uncle.
Hajipur, a stronghold represented by Chirag’s father, Ram Vilas Paswan, for nine terms, and later by his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras in 2019, witnessed speculation regarding its candidate. However, Chirag Paswan emerged as the chosen successor to his father in Hajipur, leading to the search for a candidate in Jamui.
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During a roadshow on Wednesday, Chirag Paswan personally announced Arun Bharti’s candidacy for Jamui. Bharti, an engineer and businessman, comes from a politically active family, with his mother, Jyoti, having served as an MLA and MLC from the Congress.
Addressing a public gathering, Chirag Paswan expressed confidence in Bharti’s ability to effectively represent the people of Jamui, pledging that Bharti would tackle local issues just as he had done. Bharti is scheduled to file his nomination on Thursday, the final day for the first phase of nominations, with Jamui slated to go to polls on April 19.
Meanwhile, the LJP-R has yet to unveil candidates for three seats: Vaishali, Khagaria, and Samastipur (reserved). A senior party leader hinted at introducing new faces for these seats, indicating a departure from the incumbents.
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The BJP has thrown its weight behind Chirag Paswan’s faction, allocating five seats, including the crucial Hajipur seat, while rejecting the opposing faction led by Pashupati Kumar Paras. Paras, along with five MPs, formed a separate party, RLJP, following the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, during which the LJP was accused of being the BJP’s ‘B team’ by JD-U.
Meanwhile, the nomination process for the second phase in Bihar has commenced alongside the final day of nominations for the first phase. Conflict between the Congress and RJD persists in the Aurangabad constituency. Chirag Paswan’s presence during Arun Bharti’s nomination filing underscored his optimism for the NDA’s success in Bihar, predicting victory in all 40 seats.