LJP meet on poll today, Chirag questions Nitish’s Dalit move

NEW DELHI: The Lok Janshakti Party’s Bihar leadership is scheduled to meet on Monday to chart its strategy for the upcoming state polls. Sources said it was unlikely that LJP would walk out of NDA despite recent bad blood between the party and JD(U) led by chief minister Nitish Kumar.
On Sunday, party chief Chirag Paswan shot off another letter to Kumar, questioning the motive behind the state government’s overtures towards Dalits. “The Bihar government has taken a decision to provide a government job to one family member of any SC/ST who gets killed. Several people from SC/ST communities have talked to me and asked whether it will remain only as an announcement for the upcoming polls. They have lamented how several other promises made by the government have not been delivered,” Chirag said in his letter.
He also demanded that the state government give jobs within a month to family members of SCs/STs who were killed during the 15 years of Kumar’s government.
Meanwhile, party sources said LJP was in alliance with BJP at the Centre and in Bihar even when JD(U) had broken up with the saffron party. “We are with BJP and it’s up to it to decide its ally,” a source said, adding that the possibility of the party fielding candidates against JD(U) was remote.
There has been talk in political circles over LJP’s perceived opposition to Kumar leading the NDA in polls. The party even put out big ads earlier this week positioning Chirag as the one fighting for “Bihari pride”.
Chirag has taken potshots at Kumar on several issues in the past few months, particularly over migrant workers and handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“When Nitish Kumar first took charge of the state, he had promised that his government would ensure reverse migration. But after so many years, the situation has not changed at all. We are fighting to restore the pride of Bihar and its people and to accelerate development,” a party leader said.
Chirag has said his party will release its manifesto with the focus on ‘Bihar First, Bihari First’ the day elections are notified.