Chirag Paswan, whose party has pulled off a stunner by winning all five Lok Sabha seats it contested, told NDTV today that he is in favour of a review of the Agnipath scheme and a nationwide caste census. Mr Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is the second NDA ally after JDU to push for the Agnipath review and caste census.
Speaking to NDTV in an exclusive interview, the 41-year-old said the credit for his party's success goes to the people of Bihar. "I have gone through a bad phase for the longest period of my life, but the one thing that kept me going is that I was with the people of my state. I had that belief in myself. I had the blessings of my father," he said.
With his party's impressive Lok Sabha performance, Chirag Paswan has stepped out of the shadow of his father, late Ram Vilas Paswan, a stalwart in Indian politics. His death in 2020 was the beginning of a challenging phase for the junior Paswan. His uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras claimed Ram Vilas Paswan's legacy, and Chirag lost the party's name and symbol. But ahead of the Lok Sabha election, the BJP realised that it was the young leader they must bet on for the crucial Paswan votes in Bihar. And results show that the bet has paid off.
Mr Paswan said that he has big shoes to fill because he has been elected from Bihar's Hajipur seat, which Ram Vilas Paswan won a record eight times. "The kind of work he has done there, to match up to that would be a task, but I am ready for that. This is what I always wanted, to fulfill my father's dream, to carry his work forward was something I always wished for," he said.
"The last couple of years were very difficult. I lost my father, my party, symbol. We were contesting this election on a new party name, a new symbol. To get people used to a new symbol was a difficult task. But God has been very kind and the people of my state, their belief in me was overwhelming," he said.
Among the five MPs elected from LJP (Ram Vilas) is 25-year-old Shambhavi Choudhary, among the youngest in this Lok Sabha. On promoting youngsters and women, Mr Paswan said, "Young faces need to come in. There is a generational shift. In 70s, a generation had come, my father was there Lalu ji was there, Nitish ji was there, Sushil Modi was there. Now again, my state is going through a generational shift. We see younger people leading parties, Tejashwi is there, I am there, but within the party, we don't see people promoting younger faces, probably because of their insecurities."
Taking a swipe, Chirag Paswan referred to young Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar, who contested from Delhi amid reports that the RJD was against him contesting from his home seat Begusarai. "We have seen new faces leaving Congress because they were not promoted. Kanhaiya has to come to Delhi to contest because he was not allowed to contest in Bihar," he said. Asked if the decision was due to RJD's insecurity, he said, "Of course, they don't want anyone more articulate than them. These parties make alliances based on casteism, communalism."
Mr Paswan said he too has an MY equation -- used to refer to RJD's Muslim Yadav vote arithmetic. "My MY says Mahila and Yuva," he said.
On JDU pushing for a review of the Agnipath scheme for recruitment to armed forces, he said, "Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has said the platform is open for discussions. I believe that we must deliver how much we could deliver through Agniveer, because this is something related to the youth of our country. A review must be done But these things can be kept on hold for a while, government formation is happening and after that, we can sit and discuss these things."
On caste Census, another demand by the JDU, the LJP leader said he and his party supports the call for a nationwide caste Census. "I believe the government should have this data. I am not in favour of making it public because it increases the divide," he said.
On BJP opposing this demand, raised by the Opposition parties too, Mr Paswan said, "That's why we are different parties coming in an alliance for a common motto. But everybody has got their own concerns. Mine is an issued-based alliance. Whenever any agenda of our concern gets affected, we will voice ourselves. This is one."
Launched in 2022, Agnipath scheme provides for short-term induction of personnel into the armed forces. Those recruited under the scheme are called Agniveers.
Under the scheme, youngsters in 17.5 years-21 years age group are inducted for a four-year period. There is a provision to retain 25 per cent of these recruits for 15 more years. The others will get a financial package when their service comes to an end.
The Opposition has said this will leave Agniveers unemployed at 25 and also affect cohesion in the forces. The Centre argues the Agnipath scheme is aimed at improving battle preparedness in the armed forces and achieving a balance of youth and experience.
On the question of a special package for Bihar, another demand pending for years, he said, "Not only a special package, but a special status is what we have been demanding. There are some concerns. Till the time we had a planning commission, it was easy. But with Niti Aayog coming into the picture, certain pointers which allow this. I think that needs to be revisited and corrected. We now have a strong double engine government, so we hope we will be able to fulfill the dreams of crores of people in Bihar."
When asked if he is looking at a ministerial berth in the third Narendra Modi government, he replied, "That's the Prime Minister's prerogative and least of my concerns."
On a question on INDIA bloc leaders' assertion that they will take an "appropriate step at an appropriate time" and whether there is a chance for the LJP to switch sides, he replied, "The Opposition leaders are used to making nonsense comments. Throughout the election, they kept saying that Bihar will give shocking results. What shock? We lost some seats, but we performed well. Where are they?" NDA allies won 31 out of Bihar's 40 seats this time -- eight less than in 2019.
"The NDA is absolutely intact. I was in the meeting yesterday, the kind of commitment everyone showed. And we have to show it, it is the Prime Minister's win. He was leading us, all the credit goes to him. We stand by him strongly," he said.
In fact, Chirag Paswan putting his weight behind issues raised by the JDU is also significant against the backdrop of the friction betweem the two parties in the past. The two sides, which traded barbs and also contested elections against each other over the past few years, decided to bury the hatchet after the BJP joined ranks with Chirag Paswan. Ahead of the meeting of NDA allies after poll results, Chirag Paswan met Nitish Kumar and congratulated him on the victory.