Amid 'Fissures', LJP Says Will Fight Bihar Assembly Polls Under Nitish Kumar's Leadership

The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) on Saturday said it will fight Bihar Assembly elections later this year under the leadership of NDA ally Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and it is not right to consider the party's views on shortcomings in the state governments working as an expression of displeasure or annoyance.

"Definitely, we will enter the Bihar poll arena under Nitish Kumar's leadership. We will go by whatever the BJP decides. All three parties are (NDA) allies in Bihar as well," said LJP Vice-President and Chief Spokesperson AK Bajpai.

"We point out the Bihar government's shortcomings so that there can be improvement in governance. The Nitish Kumar government should become more serious about the problems faced by the migrant labourers," he added.

Giving an example, he said that when the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act was diluted, the LJP had raised objections and taken up the issue with the Union government, which ultimately helped redress the grievances.

"So, pointing out shortcomings helps remove them. There is no harm in raising the problems faced by the migrants in Bihar," he added.

The LJP leader said his party was geared up for elections in all 243 Bihar Assembly seats, making it clear that LJP did not have any objections to projection of Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar as the chief ministerial face of the National Democratic Alliance led by the BJP.

"Making preparations for 243 seats does not mean we will contest all. It is meant to strengthen our position so that alliance candidates on these seats can be helped in elections. LJP is working at the booth level to strengthen its base," Bajpai said.

The LJP leader said that the party had made 31 lakh members before the nationwide lockdown was imposed in India and had set a target of 1 crore membership.

He said that the party President Chirag Paswan, son of LJP supremo and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, will hold on June 7 a videoconference meeting with party leaders at the district level in Bihar to discuss preparations for the coming Bihar elections.

Chirag Paswan had recently said that the BJP will decide who will be the face of the NDA alliance in Bihar elections even though BJP leaders Amit Shah and JP Nadda have already made clear that Nitish Kumar will lead the NDA in the poll battle.