This story is from January 12, 2020

LJP MP Pashupati Kumar Paras justifies demand for 42 seats to contest Bihar assembly polls

Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) MP Pashupati Kumar Paras has demanded 42 out of 243 seats for his party to contest the state assembly elections, triggering a fresh controversy on the seat-sharing issue among the NDA allies in Bihar.
LJP MP Pashupati Kumar Paras justifies demand for 42 seats to contest Bihar assembly polls
Pashupati Kumar Paras (ANI photo)
PATNA: Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) MP Pashupati Kumar Paras has demanded 42 out of 243 seats for his party to contest the state assembly elections, triggering a fresh controversy on the seat-sharing issue among the NDA allies in Bihar.
A few days ago, JD(U)’s senior functionary and political strategist Prashant Kishor had asserted that the seat-sharing talks between BJP and JD(U) for the assembly polls should be in 1:1.4 or 1:1.3 ratio.
Kishor had also said there was no question of BJP and JD(U) contesting equal number of seats in the assembly election and the Lok Sabha polls formula could not be justified now.
Rejecting Kishor’s assertions, Paras said LJP must be allotted at least 42 seats on the plea that his party had contested from similar number of constituencies in 2015 as an NDA ally. “Moreover, the LJP got six Lok Sabha and one Rajya Sabha seats as part of seat sharing with BJP and JD(U) during the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Even that formula is considered, LJP should get at least 42 assembly seats as one Lok Sabha constituency in Bihar comprises six assembly segments,” Paras told TOI on Saturday.
He said, in 2015 elections, JD(U), RJD and Congress — the then three allies of the Mahagathbandhan — shared 100:100:43 seats. JD(U) and RJD contested 100 seats and the rest 43 were left for Congress. Now, the NDA has three allies. “If BJP and JD(U) agree with the Mahagathbandhan’s 2015 formula, LJP should be given 43 assembly seats to contest,” Paras, who remained the LJP’s state president for around 12 years, said.
Rejecting Kishor’s argument, Paras said he was in regular touch with the then LJP chief and his brother Ram Vilas Paswan when the seat-sharing talks among the top NDA leaders for 2019 Lok Sabha polls were going on in Delhi. “Then it was almost decided, though not in writing, that the seat sharing during the next assembly polls in Bihar will be done on the same formula. I am telling it as an MP and a senior LJP leader,” the Hajipur MP said.

In private talks, some senior JD(U) leaders rejected Paras’s demand saying JD(U) must get a lion’s share because the assembly polls would be contested on the face of their party chief Nitish Kumar. They also argued that JD(U) had always been contesting more seats than the BJP in Bihar assembly polls ever since the two parties became ally.
“In February 2005 assembly polls, JD(U) contested 128 seats and BJP 103. Similarly, JD(U) contested 139 and 141 seats in November 2005 and 2010 elections, respectively, and BJP 102 seats in both the elections,” a senior JD(U) leader told TOI.
Meanwhile, JD(U) national secretary general K C Tyagi said leaders of NDA allies should avoid issuing statement to media on the seat-sharing issue. “The seat-sharing formula will be finalized amicably by top leaders of JD(U), BJP and LJP,” Tyagi told TOI over phone.
BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand also said it is not an appropriate time to make statement on seat sharing. “It is too early. Every decision related to 2020 Bihar assembly election has to be taken by the top leadership of NDA partners,” Anand told TOI.
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