People wanted development from NDA; were disappointed over discourses on Ram temple: Chirag Paswan

While poll results in the five states were not an indication of the Modi wave waning, the people wanted development from the NDA and they were disappointed when discourses about the Ram Temple took the centrestage, LJP leader Chirag Paswan said on Thursday. Talking to reporters in Patna, he said chief ministers of BJP-ruled states Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Raman Singh, had been in power for a long time but they gave a tough fight despite the anti-incumbency factor.

"I would not say the results are a sign of the Modi wave being on the wane or the BJP being on the downside... But, certainly there is a need for introspection," said Paswan, the chairman of the LJP parliamentary board.

"I would not speak in terms of lessons as such. But certainly, development has been the motto of the BJP as also the larger NDA coalition. When issues like Ram Temple and Hanuman start dominating the discourse, it leads to doubts and disappointment among the voters," he said on being asked about what lessons could be drawn from the BJP's defeat in Hindi heartland states.

To a question about the possibility of the Narendra Modi-government bringing in an ordinance to facilitate the construction of the Ram temple at Ayodhya, Chirag Paswan said, "If such an ordinance is brought, the LJP will think over it and come out with its stand. As of now, the party is in favour of waiting till the court comes out with its verdict on the issue."

He said the LJP has never raised any unreasonable demand from the BJP.

"We have been a responsible alliance partner and are fully committed to ensuring the prime minister's return to power. We want the NDA to perform better than it did in 2014," the LJP leader said.

The NDA in Bihar is now left with the LJP and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) after the exit of Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).