With the resignation of Nitish Kumar as Bihar's chief minister, here's a look at the numbers that matter and the possibility of a new political realignment in the state.
Both factions moved swiftly to take control of the party a day after Paras, the youngest brother of Paswan's father and party founder Ram Vilas Paswan, was recognised by the Lok Sabha secretariat as the leader of the Lok Janshakti Party in the House.
In his poll rallies, Modi framed Pitroda's comments in his wider onslaught against the Congress, asserting that they have exposed its hidden agenda and that the party has become so removed from the country's social and family values that it wants to legally rob people of their assets and lifelong savings they want to bequeath to their children.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam sponsored Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation conference in Delhi was a dud with major opposition parties like the Janata Dal-United, Biju Janata Dal and Bharatiya Janata Party staying away.
"Nitish Kumar and his officers will be behind bars if we come to power," Paswan said. Addressing a rally in Dumraon, Buxar in the run-up to polling in Bihar, Paswan raised several questions before the present state government.
The LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan made the announcement ahead of his meeting with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.
Principal opposition Congress too staged a walk out saying its members should have been the first ones to speak but were being denied a chance.
Pages for the Bharatiya Janata Party's Bihar arm (BJP Bihar), Janata Dal-United, and Chirag Paswan (of the Lok Janshakti Party) saw between Rs 15 lakh and Rs 30 lakh in ad spends.
Lok Janshakti Party supremo Ramvilas Paswan on Saturday urged the Centre to raise the number of Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 814 and make provisions for a separate quota for women from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, other weaker sections of society and minorities."I have serious apprehensions over the passage of the Bill in its present form. We have suggested increasing the number of seats from existing 543 to 814," said Paswan.
The CM was present at the Patna airport to receive body of the LJP founder with whom he spent long time in the politics. The CM and other leaders cutting across party lines paid respect to the septuagenarian leader, who died in Delhi on Thursday, at the airport premises.
Upset about being snubbed by INDIA, Nitish Kumar is weighing his political options. BJP would like him back knowing that it would jolt the Opposition alliance, perhaps irreversibly.
The Bihar assembly election results appeared to belie predictions made by most exit polls which had given a clear edge to the Rashtriya Janata Dal-led Mahagathbandhan.
Making a scathing attack on his rival, Rashtriya Janata Dal President Lalu Prasad on Saturday described Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as an 'opportunist' and said his protest over the elevation of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi within the Bharatiya Janata Party was a 'charade' to corner Muslim votes.
The Bihar bandh called by opposition parties to protest against the killing of three people in police firing in Madhubani district on Monday affected normal life across the state. Most shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in Patna and other districts.
Uproarious scenes were witnessed in Lok Sabha on Wednesday after members raised the issue of violence in Maharashtra.
Forced to lie low after their dismal performance in the Lok Sabha elections, parties like Samajwadi Party, Janada Dal - Secular, Lok Janshakti Party and the Left Front have come together in Maharashtra to contest the assembly elections. Having formed the Republican Left Democratic Front in the state, these parties claim that the alliance is only for the assembly elections in Maharashtra, which are scheduled to be held on October 13.
The average age of the new Union council of ministers has reduced to 58 years from 61 years previously following Wednesday's reshuffle.
The July 5 'Bharat Bandh' to protest fuel price hike is unlikely to get the support of all non-Congress non-United Progressive Alliance parties with Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Janshakti Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal so far maintaining a silence on which side of the political divide they are.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Sunday found support from rivals Communist party of India - Marxist, Janata Dal - Secular and Lok Janshakti Party for his suggestion for the re-introduction of ballot papers in place of Electronic Voting Machines.Advani has not cast any doubts on the results of the Lok Sabha elections but feels the country should revert to ballot papers, starting with the Maharashtra assembly elections in October and some more states later.
Notwithstanding reports from within the party that severing of ties with the Congress and joining hands with the Rashtriya Janata Dal resulted in Lok Janshakti Party drawing a blank in the Lok Sabha polls, party president Ramvilas Paswan on Monday said he would align again with Lalu Prasad to contest the 2010 assembly elections in Bihar.
The petition sought setting aside speaker's June 14 circular showing the name of Paras as leader of Jan Lokshakti Party in the Lok Sabha.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com does a deep dive into four elections when Narendra Modi resorted to anti-Muslim fervour and points out that Hindu-Muslim politics does not necessarily mean victory for the BJP.
The development highlights worsening of the ties between the two BJP allies in the state.
Nearly 3,000 persons, including Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad and his Lok Janshakti Party counterpart Ramvilas Paswan were arrested during a 24-hour Bihar bandh on Monday which hit rail and road services in the state and witnessed stray incidents of stone pelting.
Be it the ruling Janata Dal-United or Bharatiya Janata Party, or the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Janshakti Party and Congress, election time in Bihar proves that blood is thicker than water when it comes to issuing tickets to the kin of politicians.
While Paswan and Singh were stopped at the Delhi-UP border, the LJP chief's younger brother and Lok Sabha member Ramchandra Paswan was taken into custody by the Uttar Pradesh Police. The leaders were going towards Greater Noida to disburse Rs two lakh as relief to the families of the victims of police firing last week.
The seat had fallen vacant following the death of Chirag Paswan's father and Lok Janshakti Party founder Ram Vilas Paswan. The BJP has nominated former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi for the seat.
Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Paswan on Friday said that the President's rule in Jharkhand was a temporary solution and elections were the only way out if no party or combination was able to form a government soon.
Former union minister and Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Paswan, who lost the recent Lok Sabha elections, said in Varanasi on Wednesday that his party would contest the 2010 Bihar assembly elections in alliance with Lalu Prasad-led Rashtriya Janata Dal and also welcomed Congress party to their fold.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi once again led the BJP's campaign holding several rallies and stepping up his attack on Opposition parties, particularly the Congress.
Acrimonious scenes were on Monday witnessed in the Rajya Sabha as members from the Bharatiya Janata Party, Lok Janshakti Party and Nationalist Congress Party clashed over the issue of reported low Muslim representation in admissions to private schools in Delhi. The sharp exchanges during Zero Hour also led to a heated argument between Ram Vilas Paswan, who raised the issue and BJP members, who alleged that Paswan was casting aspersions on P J Kurien (in the Chair).
Subhashini Yadav, a social worker, said she is taking the responsibility of carrying on the fight of the 'Mahagathbandhan' in Bihar, as her father Sharad Yadav has always supported it.
Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan has fielded himself and two close relatives including his son and brother, to contest the Lok Sabha polls in Bihar.
Bihar Member of Legislative Assembly Zakir Anwar alias Zakir Mian was arrested in Nepal in connection with the kidnapping of a businessman, the police said on Saturday. Lok Janshakti Party MLA Zakir Mian, as he is popularly known in Araria, was arrested at Jhapa town in Nepal on Friday in connection with the kidnapping of one Tulsiram Agrawal from Biratnagar a decade ago.
Without naming Chirag Paswan, the legislators are reported to have recalled the actions of the former Lok Janshakti Party chief during the 2020 state assembly polls while warning the CM that if they were not alert, it would not be good for the party.
A complaint has been filed in Muzaffarpur court against the new Lok Janshakti Party leader in Lok Sabha, Pashupati Kumar Paras, party MP Prince Raj and others for 'misleading MPs of the party and hatching a conspiracy to head the party'.
The complaint was lodged by Lok Janshakti Party national secretary Ravi Brahme.
Yadav scion also threw a challenge to Nitish Kumar for a debate on any achievement by the Janata Dal- United government in the past 15 years.
JD(U) candidate Kavita Singh defeated her nearest RJD candidate Parmeshwar Singh by 20,092 votes.
Barring a few exceptions, most known criminal-politicians and their wives, who contested the Bihar assembly polls emerged winners on Wednesday. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United,and its ally Bharatiya Janata Party, top the list of parties with poll winners who have a criminal background.
