NEW DELHI: Union minister and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan on Sunday addressed speculation over his chief ministerial ambitions, saying discussions on such matters should happen “at the right occasion”. Speaking in Patna, Paswan told ANI, “Every party wants its leader to become the chief minister. I myself wanted my father to become the chief minister or even the Prime Minister. Discussions on these topics should be held at the right occasions.”Paswan reaffirmed his support for the current NDA leadership in Bihar, adding that “many leaders of the NDA alliance have made it clear that we are contesting the elections under the leadership of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, and after the elections, the elected MLAs will once again choose Nitish Kumar as the chief minister.” He said his focus remains on Bihar’s development, noting, “I wanted to contest the Bihar elections, but the prolonged negotiations shifted my priority to focusing on the candidates of my party. In the next four to five years, I will try to focus on Bihar even more.” Ahead of the polls, Paswan has also redefined the “MY” equation — traditionally associated with the RJD’s Muslim-Yadav base — to represent Mahilayein (women) and Yuva (youth). Explaining his “Bihar First, Bihari First” vision, he told ANI, “When I talk about ‘MY equation’, ‘M’ stands for ‘mahilayein’ and ‘Y’ stands for youth. I believe both face similar issues. I am moving forward with the idea of ‘Bihar First – Bihari First’, where we can progress toward building a ‘Viksit Bihar’.”Paswan said his party’s contest on 29 seats — the same number his father won in the 2005 assembly elections — was a “spiritual signal.” “I believe in manifestations and stay spiritually connected. It cannot be a mere coincidence that after all the negotiations, my party is contesting elections on 29 seats, and my father also won elections on 29 seats,” he said.The LJP (RV) chief added that his party is exploring legal options after one candidate’s nomination was rejected due to “human error”. He expressed confidence in the NDA’s prospects, saying the opposition’s internal discord would only strengthen his alliance. “If the Mahagathbandhan is not able to resolve confusion within the alliance, how will they work for the development of the people of Bihar?” he asked.Paswan said he believes the NDA could perform even better than expected, adding, “Until now, we were measuring ourselves based on our hard work. Now, in the way the opposition has become complacent, the advantage of that will also go to us.”Polling in the Bihar Assembly elections is scheduled for November 6 and 11, with results to be declared on November 14.
