Chirag Paswan took a big risk in 2020 when he broke away from Bihar’s ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and ran his Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) solo in the state assembly elections. Many political watchers thought it would end his career. His party fielded candidates in 135 of Bihar’s 243 seats but only grabbed one victory. Critics called him a vote splitter who messed up the NDA’s chances in about 30 races, especially hurting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), or JD(U).
The NDA mainly relies on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and JD(U), with LJP—now rebranded as LJP (Ram Vilas)—as a key ally alongside others. But Chirag went rogue that year and paid the price. JD(U) saw its seats drop from 71 in 2015 to just 43 in 2020, largely because of the vote split. The main opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in the Mahagathbandhan alliance surged ahead with 75 wins out of 144 contests.
Take Khagaria, for instance: JD(U)’s candidate lost to Congress by about 3,000 votes, while LJP pulled in over 20,000. In Alauli, JD(U) trailed RJD by 2,700 votes, but LJP got more than 26,000. Similar stories played out in Maharajganj and Matihani, where LJP’s sole win came by a razor-thin 333-vote margin over JD(U). Even BJP felt the pinch— in Bhagalpur, their candidate lost to Congress by just over 1,000 votes, with LJP siphoning off more than 20,000.
Chirag’s move sparked family drama too. His uncle, Pashupati Kumar Paras, split the party, claimed the legacy of Chirag’s late father Ram Vilas Paswan, and quit the cabinet to leave the NDA. That opened the door for Chirag to rebuild.
Fast forward to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, and Chirag made a stunning comeback. Back in the NDA fold, his LJP (Ram Vilas) swept all five seats it contested in Bihar’s 40-member delegation. BJP and JD(U) each took 12 seats, showing the alliance’s strength.
Now, with Bihar Assembly elections looming—likely announced any day—Chirag isn’t as loud in his attacks on Nitish Kumar, but tensions simmer. Insiders say he’s pushing hard for around 40 seats for his party, riding high from that perfect Lok Sabha run. The young MP from Hajipur, who’s just carrying on his father’s political legacy, might even jump into the assembly race himself.
Yet experts warn it could be risky to rock the NDA boat again. Ram Vilas Paswan had a knack for reading the political winds—he’d switch to the winning side before votes were even cast. Chirag hasn’t quite mastered that yet, and another split might not play out well for Bihar politics or his rising star.
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