Denied ticket, LJP leaders to campaign against party

Trouble is brewing in union minister Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP. Sidelined in the Bihar elections, two LJP leaders said there was "no internal democracy" in the party and vowed to campaign against it.

Another Lok Janshakti Party leader also alleged that Paswan was demanding Rs.50 lakh to give ticket to contest the assembly polls.

Rama Kishore Singh, the LJP's Lok Sabha member from Vaishali, on Sunday declared that he will campaign against party candidates to ensure their defeat.

"The LJP will be defeated in all 40 constituencies it is contesting," he said.

Singh said there was no internal democracy in the party and he would campaign against LJP candidates to help its rivals.

Paswan's son-in-law Anil Kumar Sadhu, who was denied nomination to contest the assembly polls and was suspended from the party for six years, on Sunday announced he would also work to defeat the LJP candidates.

Sadhu, who was state president of the Dalit Sena, blamed Paswan's son and Lok Sabha member Chirag Paswan for his (Sadhu's) plight.

"I was betrayed by my father-in-law. He ignored my genuine claim to contest the polls," Sadhu said.

LJP leader Ram Naresh Singh accused party chief Paswan of demanding Rs.50 lakh to let him contest the elections.

"All the decisions were taken by two-three leaders including Paswan, his son Chirag and his brothers. There is no internal democracy in the LJP," Ram Naresh Singh told the media here.

He warned that ignoring "senior and experienced leaders" like him would cost the LJP in the assembly polls.

The LJP is contesting 40 of the 243 assembly seats.

Bihar will have five-phase elections between October 12 and November 5. Counting of votes will take place on November 8.