**Dalit Leaders Jitan Ram Manjhi and Chirag Paswan Up the Ante in Bihar Assembly Seat Sharing Talks**
*Patna:* Bihar’s two prominent Dalit leaders and Union ministers, Jitan Ram Manjhi and Chirag Paswan, are posing significant challenges for the BJP as they adopt tougher stances on seat-sharing arrangements ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly elections.
Jitan Ram Manjhi, head of the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), has made it clear that his party will not contest the elections unless it is allotted at least 15 seats in the alliance deal. Speaking to reporters, Manjhi emphasized that while HAM remains committed to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), it seeks a “respectable number of seats” to gain proper recognition.
“If we do not get the proposed number of seats, we will not contest the election. We will support the NDA, but we won’t contest. I don’t want to become chief minister; I just want our party to be recognised,” he said.
To ease tensions, BJP national president JP Nadda reportedly held talks with Manjhi, attempting to pacify his concerns.
Manjhi also invoked lines from Dinkar’s classic war poem *Rashmirathi*, with a slight modification. The poem originally references “5 gram” (villages) symbolizing the Pandava brothers, but Manjhi’s version read:
*”Ho nyay agar to aadha do, yadi us mein bhi koi badha ho, to de do keval 15 gram, rakho apni dharti tamam, HAM wahi khushi se khayenge, parijan pe asi na uthayenge.”*
This loosely translates to: “Give us just 15 villages and keep everything else. HAM will be happy and won’t raise arms against our own.”
On the other hand, Chirag Paswan, leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), has maintained a more discreet approach but dropped significant hints about his stance. Marking the death anniversary of his father, the late Ram Vilas Paswan—the founder of the undivided LJP—Chirag shared a cryptic message:
*”Papa always used to say, do not commit a crime, do not endure a crime. If you want to live, learn to die, learn to fight at every step.”*
Reports suggest that LJP is demanding 40 seats in the forthcoming seat-sharing arrangement. Meanwhile, the BJP is offering eight seats to HAM and 22 seats to Chirag Paswan’s faction, indicating a considerable gap between demands and offers.
As seat-sharing negotiations continue, the stance of these influential Dalit leaders will play a crucial role in shaping the Bihar assembly election landscape.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/india/bihar-election-2025-jitan-ram-manjhi-chirag-paswan-toughen-stand-on-seat-sharing-ahead-of-assembly-polls
