Chirag Paswan blames JD(U) for split in LJP, rejects decisions of faction headed by Pashupati Kumar Paras

Lok Janshakti Party leader Chirag Paswan, in a press conference on Wednesday, blamed Janata Dal (United) for engineering the split in his party. He also rejected the decisions taken by the faction headed by his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, saying the party’s constitution does not authorise the rival faction any such power. In his first interaction with the media after the split in the party , he struck a combative note by describing himself as ‘sher ka beta’ (lion’s cub) and asserted that he will fight for the cause of the party founded by his father Ram Vilas Paswan. While blaming the JD(U) for the split, he steered clear of questions regarding the role of the BJP in the development and added that what has happened is also an internal matter for which he will not target others. It is going to be a long battle, he said, as the group headed by him fights the faction of five other party MPs, led by Paras, to claim ownership of the LJP. The JD(U), Paswan alleged, had been working to cause a split in the party even when his father was alive. “A conspiracy was hatched behind my back while I was ill,” he claimed. Paswan also wrote a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, asking him to issue a circular saying that the former still holds the position of leader of LJP in the lower house, according to a report in Hindustan Times. “Since Article 26 of the Constitution of Lok Jan Shakti Party empowers the Central Parliamentary Board of the party to decide who would be Leader of our Party in Lok Sabha, hence, the decision of announcing Pashupati Kumar Paras MP as Leader of LJP party in the Lok Sabha is contrary to the provision of Constitution of our party,” he wrote. With inputs from PTI