Paras accuses Chirag of deriving political mileage out of eviction

Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras on Monday charged his estranged nephew Chirag Paswan with trying to derive political mileage out of his recent eviction from the house allotted to the latter's late father Ram Vilas Paswan in New Delhi.

Paras, who is the late Paswan's younger brother, claimed that the Centre had sent as many as six notices to Chirag before he was made to vacate the 12, Janpath bungalow and alleged that the young leader was now trying to garner sympathy by claiming that the deceased leader's belongings were defaced during the eviction.

Chirag had himself thrown photographs of bade sahib (Ram Vilas Paswan) on the roadside and is now crying hoarse that it was done by the personnel who carried out the eviction. How come he was able to safely take away all his belongings? And why was not a single belonging of his own and his mother among the things which were dumped outside the bungalow? asked Paras, who was inducted into the Union cabinet a year ago.

Paras, the Lok Sabha MP of Hajipur which late Paswan had represented multiple terms during his lifetime, heads Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party, a faction of the party founded by his deceased brother which he split last year along with other fellow MPs.

He reiterated that Chirag's vainglorious rebellion against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was to be blamed for the young leader's political isolation.

Had Chirag remained within limits, not me but he would have been inducted into the Union cabinet upon the demise of his father. The party would have remained intact. And he would have happily continued living in 12, Janpath, in the footsteps of his father, claimed Paras, who has been accused by his nephew of having rebelled at the instance of Nitish Kumar.

Paras also alleged that his relations with Chirag had soured soon after the death of his late brother in 2020 when he met Nitish Kumar with a charter of demands to honour the memory of the deceased LJP founder.

Chirag had by then started his vitriolic campaign against Nitish Kumar. I was asked by journalists, after I met the CM, about my own opinion about him. I replied that I had formerly been a member of his cabinet and I found him a good administrator, said Paras.

Chirag was furious when we met at his house. I still remember the date. It was October 16. We were still in mourning. But he humiliated me in front of our extended family. I broke all family ties with him on that day, though I remained with the party, he recalled.

Paras said that a few months later, simmering discontent among the party rank and file over Chirag's revolt that had left the LJP isolated from the rest of the NDA led him to stage the split in the party.

Paras also accused Chirag of having planned a jaanleva hamla (murderous attack) on him while he was in Mokama, on the outskirts of the city, on Saturday last.

On way to a function held in the memory of Dalit icon Baba Chauharmal, the convoy of Paras was blocked by Chirag's supporters who also waved black flags. Interestingly, Chirag also visited Mokama on the same day and addressed a public meeting.