Sending a strong message that he couldn’t be ignored in Bihar, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan on Wednesday put up an impressive show at his Sankalp Rally in Patna.

While Gandhi Maidan has seen bigger crowds, what wasn’t lost on anyone is that Paswan has just 10 MLAs and four MPs in the state.

In his speech, Paswan attacked both Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav and urged the people to give him an opportunity to rule Bihar. He claimed that it was on the strength of his support that both the NDA and Lalu had won elections in the past and that now he would walk alone.

“Those who want to join us will join,” he said, adding that he had been ditched by both the NDA and Lalu and he had decided to teach them a lesson.

The Union Minister also refrained from projecting himself as a Dalit leader, declaring that he wants to take along all castes and communities. He castigated Nitish for his move to form a “Maha Dalit Commission” and charged that it was an effort to divide the community.

“Nitish is pursuing the politics of divide and rule,” he claimed, while Lalu had already gone down that path. In contrast, Paswan added, throughout his political career, he had fought for every section. His support for the implementation of the Mandal Commission was a testimony of the fact, he said.

The LJP leader talked about Lalu “ditching” him, saying that he had betrayed him at the time of distribution of portfolios at the Centre. “He would never shake hands with Lalu again,” Paswan vowed.

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