Pashupati Paras resigns from Union cabinet, accuses BJP of injustice

Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras resigned on Tuesday, 19 March, as he accused the BJP of doing "injustice" with his Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party by excluding it from the seat-sharing deal with allies for the Lok Sabha polls in Bihar.

Paras's announcement came at a press conference a day after the BJP-led NDA announced its seat-sharing pact and gave five seats to the Chirag Paswan-led LJP (Ram Vilas), ignoring his faction's claims.

Paras made brief remarks at the press conference about his resignation and did not elaborate about his future plans.

The only ally in the Union cabinet headed by Modi, he called the prime minister a big leader.

The RLJP president said he was thankful to Modi before expressing his displeasure over the treatment meted out to him. Paras said he had served the National Democratic Alliance with honesty and loyalty but received injustice.

"Injustice has been meted out to my party and especially me," he said.

His party's spokesperson Shravan Agarwal said its leaders will meet soon to decide its next course of action but made it clear that Paras will contest elections.

Though Paras enjoyed the support of five of the six Lok Sabha MPs of the LJP until sometime back, none of them accompanied him at the press conference.

Some of them, sources said, are on a hunt for striking deals with other parties, including the one headed by his estranged nephew Chirag Paswan, to contest the upcoming polls.

Paras may explore the possibility of joining hands with the opposition alliance led by Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar to fight against his nephew in the Hajipur seat.

He represents Hajipur in the outgoing Lok Sabha and Paswan has also indicated that he will be contesting from the seat, considered a pocket borough of his late father Ram Vilas Paswan.