Bihar Assembly election 2020: Crucial LJP meeting tomorrow amid worsening ties with JD(U)

The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) has called a crucial meeting of its MPs on September 16 amid reports of discomfort with Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United). According to news agency ANI, the party could take a decision on whether to contest the upcoming Assembly elections in Bihar in an alliance with the NDA.

The issues of worsening ties with the JD(U) was raised at the LJP’s Bihar Parliamentary board meeting on September 7. The board authorised its national president Chirag Paswan to take a final call on the nature of alliance for the elections. Chirag is the son of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

The party had also passed a resolution to prepare a list of 143 candidates and send it to the central leadership for approval.

The NDA in Bihar comprises BJP, JD(U), LJP and HAM. The LJP has been vocal against Nitish Kumar for some time. Chirag has publicly questioned Nitish Kumar’s handling of Covid-19 situation, floods and migrants exodus.

The LJP was given only one berth in the Nitish Kumar’s Cabinet after JD-U’s return to the NDA in 2017. Its minister Pashupati Paras had, however, resigned after he won from the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 general elections.The party currently has no representation in Nitish Kumar’s Cabinet.

Although Chirag is vocal against Nitish, he has refrained from commenting on the BJP leadership and reiterated that the party will contest elections in an agreement with the saffron party.

Reports say that LJP’s series of meetings and demands by its leaders are seen just as pressure tactics by the party to get a larger share of seats in Bihar election within NDA.

Bihar is slated to go to polls in October-November this year.