Chirag Paswan, who is in the midst of a inter-party power-tussle with his uncle Pashupati Paras, said on Friday, 25 June, that he expected Prime Minister Narendra Modi to support him during these difficult times as he had done "everything possible for him like Hanuman," NDTV reported.
“I have been Hanuman for PM Modi. Hanuman did everything possible for his Ram. I did everything possible for my PM and supported him wholeheartedly in every decision.”Chirag Paswan to NDTV
He added that PM Modi also had his full support in matters of huge social and political importance, such as the revocation of Article 370 and the CAA-NRC (Citizenship Amendment Act), whereas Nitish Kumar's party had not supported the Centre in these matters.
The leader, who was recently ousted as the party president by five ministers led by Paras, spoke to NDTV and said that his uncle betrayed his father and former Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan.
"He was close to papa. So, it is a betrayal to him. He is my elder and if he had a problem, he could have always told me what’s bothering him. We could have worked it out together," Paswan told NDTV.
Earlier, Paswan had expressed that he was 'hurt' by Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) silence on the LJP split.
Background
Five out of six Lok Janshakti Party MPs in the Lok Sabha had rebelled against party chief Paswan and dismissed him as the head of the parliamentary party.
The coup was led by Paswan’s uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, though there have allegations that this had been done at the behest of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Paswan also alleged that Kumar's party had a "visible" role in splitting LJP, and added that JD(U) has a history of having a hand in encouraging defections.
Amid the power tussle, Paswan held a national executive meeting in Delhi on Sunday, 20 June.
A day after the Paras-led faction disbanded all bodies and state units affiliated with the party, Paswan held a national executive meeting in Delhi on 20 June. However, Paras claimed that Paswan cannot hold a party meeting since he’s not the president anymore.
After the meet, Paswan asserted that he had the support of more than 90 percent of the national executive members.
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