LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan, after securing five Lok Sabha seats to contest within the NDA, announced plans to campaign alongside Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar for a potential 40-seat sweep in Bihar. Chirag’s rift with Nitish Kumar led to his party split and subsequent sidelining. Nitish blamed Chirag for the sharp drop in the number of his seats and an acute sense of frustration.