Chirag should clarify stand on fighting polls: JD(U) min
2
Patna: Senior JD(U) leader and state IPRD minister Maheshwar Hazari on Friday launched a sharp attack on LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan, criticising his repeated assertions about contesting all 243 seats in the upcoming
Bihar assembly elections
.
Speaking to reporters in Khagaria, Hazari said, "If Chirag wants to contest the elections on his own, he should declare it publicly. It is not right to say one thing on stage and another off stage. This should not happen. He is a Union minister in the NDA govt and should follow coalition dharma."
Chirag, whose party leader Rajesh Kumar won the Khagaria Lok Sabha seat in 2024, has increasingly positioned himself as the state's principal Dalit voice, a strategy JD(U) sees as divisive and politically provocative.
Further criticising Chirag, Hazari said, "There is no substitute for CM
Nitish Kumar
in Bihar, nor will there be. Everyone knows who was responsible for JD(U)'s third-place finish in the 2020 assembly elections, but despite that, Nitishji became CM and continued for five years."
Hazari's remarks alluded to the 2020 elections when Chirag's LJP fielded candidates against JD(U) in several seats, which is widely believed to have contributed to JD(U)'s losses.
Hazari also accused Chirag of undermining the coalition by publicly attacking the state govt. "While being part of the NDA, he keeps criticising the state govt from public platforms. This is against the coalition dharma," he said. The minister was responding to Chirag's remarks regarding the state's law and order situation.
Defending the Nitish-led govt, Hazari added, "The govt is working effectively. Negative statements are being made only to create confusion among the public."
Chirag, who frequently raises law and order issues in his speeches, has also claimed credit for the Bihar Youth Commission, which was approved in the recent state cabinet meeting. In public rallies, he has reiterated that his party is preparing to contest all 243 seats, saying that he is committed to returning to Bihar politics with his 'Bihar First, Bihari First' vision.
Responding to Hazari's statements, LJP(RV) functionary Arun Bharti said, "We cannot become Dhritarashtra for the nation. There are concerns in society and among the people of Bihar about crime and criminals. This society gives us our leaders and leadership. Raising these concerns within the alliance and communicating them to our partners is not a violation of coalition dharma," Bharti said.
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