Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras rules out compromise with nephew Chirag Paswan

NEW DELHI: Amid reports of the BJP trying for a compromise between two factions of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) headed by Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan before the Lok Sabha polls, the former ruled out joining hands with his nephew.

“Never. Never. Never...leaders from the BJP had spoken to me about compromise, but I have told them this isn’t possible. Na toh dal mein milaoonga aur na hi dil mein (there is no place for him in my party or in my heart),” Paras said as he reiterated that he is the political “heir” of former LJP chief and his late brother Ram Vilas Paswan. He also demanded the central government to confer the Bharat Ranta to his late brother.

While Paras has maintained that he will contest and win from Hajipur, Chirag has also put forward his claim for the seat. Both the factions are now part of the BJP-led NDA. The minister claimed that his brother had asked him to fight from the constituency even in 2019 and had also asked “me to carry forward his legacy and fulfil his unfinished dreams”.

Speaking at a book release on the late LJP patriarch, Paras said when he made a statement on Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Chirag had expressed his displeasure and had even threatened to suspend him from the party for six years. “I said if that was the case, then I would resign. Then Chirag said that his blood is different from mine. How can a nephew say this to his uncle? I can never excuse him,” the Union minister said.

Paras claimed that their family was divided because of people from outside. He said while his sons were not allowed to meet his ailing brother in hospital, others were meeting Paswan when he was admitted.