Muzaffarpur: BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi will hold his ‘hunkar’ rally in Muzaffarpur. The event will see BJP’s new ally Ram Vilas Paswan sharing the stage with him.
Today’s ‘hunkar’ rally will be held in Bakhri-Parimasa area on the city’s outskirts after the BJP’s state leadership found the original venue at the Police Lines lacking in space to accommodate the lakhs expected to attend the event.
With Lok Sabha 40 seats, Bihar is central to team NaMo’s plan to ensure that Modi wins the race to the Prime Minister’s Office in Delhi’s Raisina Hill. The BJP has accused the Nitish Kumar government of non-cooperation as its earlier demand for a bigger area at Police Lines was not accepted by the administration.
The alliance with Paswan’s Lok Janshkati Party is what the saffron hopes will give it the edge in the three-cornered contest with RJD-Congress combine and JD(U). With his core support base among the dalits, Paswan’s re-entry into the NDA fold is expected to add 3-4% votes to BJP’s support base in the state – primarily among the upper castes. Paswan had walked out of the NDA in 2002 over the Gujarat riots.
Paswan refers to the clean chit given to Modi by the courts to justify his U-turn, however, the fact remains that the LJP chief was fighting a losing battle to stay relevant in politics. Having spent five years in political wilderness – he lost the Lok Sabha polls in 2009 – Paswan has reasons to align with the side that is widely perceived to win.
However, the bigger story in LJP chanting the NaMo mantra is the growing pre-eminence of Paswan’s son and political heir Chirag, who played a key role in formalising the alliance with the BJP.
The younger Paswan says he was too young when Babri happened and hence it is a non-issue for most in his generation. The 32-year-old does say that what happened in Gujarat in 2002 was wrong but is also quick to assert that his party’s support to Narendra Modi is issue based and the issue here is development.
Modi will also address rallies in Purnia on March 10 and Gaya on March 14, while the schedule of his fourth rally in Bihar is being fixed.
Bureau Report
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