Bihar: No seat-sharing talks with NDA partners yet says Chirag Paswan

PATNA: LJP national president Chirag Paswan on Sunday said his party has so far not held any seat-sharing talk with senior leaders of the NDA constituents for the upcoming assembly elections in the state.
In an emotional letter addressed to workers of the party, Chirag said he had not been able to remain present in Patna due to the health condition of his father and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, who is admitted to the ICU of a Delhi hospital for treatment.
Chirag said the senior Paswan, Union minister of consumer affairs, food and public distribution, ignored his routine health check-up due to his busy schedule to ensure timely implementation of free ration scheme of the central government during Covid-induced lockdown.
The letter said senior Paswan’s health condition subsequently deteriorated. About three weeks ago, he was admitted to a Delhi hospital. “I see him in the ICU every day fighting with the disease. We hope he will be with people soon after getting well,” the Jamui MP said.
He added, “Although my father has been asking me to return to Patna and be with workers of the party when the assembly polls are round the corner, I can’t do so. Being a son, I think it is not proper to be away from my father when he needs my help,” Chirag said.
Chirag said he had also made it clear at the meeting of the parliamentary board of the party and again at the meeting with the MPs of the party held in New Delhi recently that seat-sharing talks were not held with any NDA partner for the Bihar assembly election.
Taking a dig at the state government (of which LJP is not a part), Chirag said the state government led by CM Nitish Kumar is focusing on ‘saat nishchay’ programme, which was launched in 2015 when JD(U) was part of the Grand Alliance comprising RJD, Congress and the JD(U).
The LJP chief asked the workers of the party to continue their work on presenting a different development road map, ‘Bihar first, Bihari first’. He also exhorted party men to work sincerely with people who are grappling with foods and Covid-19 pandemic.
Chirag’s letter came barely two days after a senior JD(U) MLC, Gulam Gaus, suggested him not to work as ‘rajkumar (king’s son)’.
Last week, Chirag had written to PM Narendra Modi, saying that people of Bihar were not happy with the functioning of CM Nitish Kumar.