Hinting at a possible reconciliation with his nephew Chirag Paswan, Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras has said that if the former makes amends for his behaviour, a merger is possible with his party.
After the demise of former Union food processing minister Ram Vilas Paswan, there was a split in the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) with Chirag and Paras-led factions staking claims for the party.
Speaking to the reporters, Paras said, "He should first atone, only then reconciliation is possible because time is the ultimate power. He did not misbehave with an individual but his uncle, He should realize his mistake and only then a union is possible."
The Election Commission of India (EC) had allotted new names and symbols to the two warring factions of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) - the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party, led by union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras, and the LJP (Ram Vilas), led by Chirag Paswan.
Notably, Chirag Paswan had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court against the decision of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to designate Pashupati Kumar Paras as the leader of the party's parliamentary party in the House.
The Delhi High Court dismissed Chirag Paswan's plea on Friday stating it does not have any merit.
In June 2021, Pashupati Kumar Paras, the younger brother of LJP founder Ram Vilas Paswan along with five other MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and handed over a letter to him seeking the removal of Chirag Paswan as party chief and as the Lok Sabha Parliamentary party leader.
Birla accepted Paras as the floor leader of the LJP in the lower house.
The fallout between Paras and Chirag Paswan has been attributed to a range of issues including the former's dissatisfaction with his nephew's decision to break away from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the Bihar Assembly polls.
The LJP was formed by former Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan in 2000. Paswan, a heavyweight leader in Bihar politics, passed away in October 2020.
( With inputs from ANI )
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