By declaring Tejashwi as CM face, INDIA bloc gave up little chance it had: Chirag

Union minister and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan on Tuesday (October 28, 2025) said the naming of RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as the chief ministerial candidate of the INDIA bloc has revived memories of "jungle raj" in Bihar.

Mr. Paswan said the move has taken away even "a sliver of a chance" the opposition alliance had in the upcoming Bihar assembly elections.

The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader made the remark while responding to questions from journalists about Mr. Yadav's jibe at the NDA's alleged inability to name its own CM candidate.

The Hajipur MP said, "How many times does it need to be said that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is the NDA's face. When Union Home Minister Amit Shah simply spoke about the due procedure, the opposition is twisting that out of context".

Mr. Shah, the BJP's principal strategist, was recently asked whether he could affirm that Kumar, who heads the JD(U), will continue as the chief minister, despite age-related health issues, if the NDA won the polls.

Mr. Shah had replied, "Who am I to say so? Yes, we are contesting the polls under Nitish Kumar's leadership. After the elections, who would be the CM is a decision that NDA legislators shall jointly take".

This has led to speculations in a section of the media that the BJP, which has not headed a government in Bihar so far, was having second thoughts on the JD(U) supremo.

Mr. Paswan trained his guns at Mr. Yadav, saying "By mistake, and under pressure from his party, he has been named as CM candidate and he is behaving as if he is already the CM. The reason why Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had been refraining from doing so was that he is aware that as soon as the RJD leader is projected, people will start recalling the jungle raj and recoil in fear".

"So, by naming him (Yadav) the CM, the INDIA bloc has given up the half per cent chance it might have had. And what do they hope to gain by promising Mukesh Sahni the Deputy CM's post? The way he has been coerced into submission by the RJD is not lost on his Nishad community", alleged Paswan.

He also chuckled at the statement of RJD general secretary Abdul Bari Siddiqui that Yadav has a long way to go before he could be called "Jan Nayak", an epithet associated with Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur.

Mr. Paswan said, "To call oneself a hero of the people betrays utter lack of humility. No wonder, it has triggered resentment in his own party. He is yet to make a mark for himself. The legacy that he carries (of father and RJD president Lalu Prasad) is all about jungle raj".