Paswans Vs, Not With, Nitish Kumar In Election? Key Meet Today

The Election Commission is likely to announce the election this month (File)

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will launch his campaign for state elections on Monday under a cloud of uncertainty over his key alliance with the Lok Janshakti Party or LJP, led by Chirag Paswan. At the same time, Chirag Paswan's father, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, will meet party leaders to discuss whether they should go with or against the Chief Minister's Janata Dal United in the upcoming polls.

Both the parties have been sparring over the last few months on several issues including the Nitish Kumar government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic and its response to the recent floods. In July, the LJP sided with the opposition to allege that there was no initiative on part of the Chief Minister to investigate the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, a "promising young man" from the state.

Mr Kumar's recent decision to join forces with former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, a Dalit leader like the Paswans with a history of acrimony with the LJP, has worsened ties.

A day before the meeting, Chirag Paswan, 37, alleged in a scathing letter to Nitish Kumar that he hadn't made good on the promise of free land to members of the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities.

Chirag Paswan, who has been attacking Mr Kumar routinely over the past few months and rallied behind the opposition over deferring the Bihar polls because of the coronavirus outbreak, also demanded jobs for all those from SC/ST communities who died during the Chief Minister's 15-year rule.

The Paswans, however, have not directly attacked the BJP, which has been saying that the upcoming elections will be contested under the leadership of the JDU chief and with all the existing allies.

According to reports, the Paswans, in the meeting, might discuss with their leaders the feasibility of an arrangement wherein the party will stay put in the NDA and contest only against the JDU, not against the BJP.

A similar electoral strategy had worked for the LJP in 2005, when the party had played a pivotal role in stopping Lalu Yadav's RJD from winning yet another term in government. The LJP, a Congress-RJD ally at the time, had contested polls against Mr Yadav's party, which resulted in a hung assembly. In subsequent polls, Mr Kumar won enough seats to form his maiden government.

If the LJP - which has notable support among the Paswan community and other scheduled caste communities - decides to contest against the JDU-BJP combine, the opposition might benefit.

The Election Commission is likely to announce the election this month.