Law Kumar Mishra
Patna: As the union cabinet headed by PM Narendra Modi is being reshuffled on Tuesday, RJD president Lalu Prasad on Sunday suggested that Food and consumer affairs minister Ram Vilas Paswan, who is also president of LJP, a constituent of NDA, should be dropped from the cabinet because he has turned old. Paswan should be replaced by former chief minister and HAM (S) chief Jeetan Ram Manjhi, Lalu said.
Paswan strongly reacted to Lalu’s suggestion on Monday and commented, “Lalu fears only me and my son Chirag. He is too old He has been jailed several times. He had failed at university examinations ten times. His supporters are involved in murders and one of RJD MLAs is jailed in a rape case. He has no authoity to speak.”
Paswan said Bihar finance mihister Abdul Bari Siddiqui is the senior most leader in RJD and a prominent minority leader. Lalu should have made Siddiqui deputy chief minister in place of his son Tejeshwi Yadav.
At an Iftar party hosted by former leader of oppsition in Vidhan Parishad Ghulam Ghouse, Lalu had said Jeetan Ram Manjhi should be inducted into the union cabinet by dropping Psswan who has turned old. Manjhi, according to Lalu, is a senior dalit leader. Manjhi on Monday responded to the recommendation of Lalu by saying Paswan was like his elder brother.”I will not like to become a union minister by axing Paswan,” Manjhi said.
According to the official record, Lalu was born on June 11,1948, and Paswan on July 5, 1946.LJP workers have decided to celebrate Paswan’s birthday on a big scale across the state.