August 10, 2026

Nitish Kumar Strikes Back At Chirag Paswan

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2021-06-14 15:27:45

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Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

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The festering dispute between uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras and nephew Chirag Paswan of late Ram Bilas Paswan's Lok Janashakti Party (LJP) in Bihar took an ugly turn today when 5 MPs of the party asked the Lok Sabha speaker to recognize them as a separate group leaving Chirag Paswan as the only MP of the party in the house. Paras also gained control of the party.

Reports suggest that the coup was managed by Nitish Kumar and the NDA. While it is reported that Paras has been offered a cabinet berth at the Centre by the NDA, the other MPs were worked upon by Maheshwar Hazari, a relative of the Paswans.

When an outmaneuvered Chirag went to his uncle's house to seek rapproachment, he found that Paras was not willing to meet him. He is reported to have waited for close to two hours in his car outside Paras' house. Other reports suggest that Paras was not at home. But if Chirag was waiting outside, Paras must have been informed. If he did not turn up to meet his nephew in two hours, the answer was clear. There will be no going back.

It seems that Nitish Kumar has not forgotten how Chirag Paswan had opted out of the NDA before the elections in Bihar and contested alone. The LJP had then cut into the votes of JD(U) and pushed it to the third place. Though Nitish Kumar remained the chief minister, his party became the junior partner in the alliance with the BJP. He was waiting to strike back at Chirag and used Paras as his trump card. It seems the NDA has also helped in this. For now, Chirag Paswan is isolated. But one is sure this is not going to be the last chapter in this saga. Chirag will make a counter move soon although his back is to the wall.