Bihar Polls: Political Row Erupts Over Muslim Representation in Ticket Distribution; Chirag Paswan Slams RJD, Tejashwi Hints at Muslim Deputy CM

Patna: As the battle for Bihar intensifies ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections, a fresh political controversy has emerged over the alleged underrepresentation of Muslims in ticket allocation by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and its INDIA bloc allies.

Muslims, who form 17.7% of Bihar’s population, have long been considered a crucial voting bloc. However, this election season has sparked debate over whether secular parties are truly reflecting that influence in their candidate lists.

According to the data so far, RJD has fielded 18 Muslim candidates, while its ally Congress has given tickets to 10 Muslim nominees. In contrast, the Janata Dal (United) has allotted tickets to four Muslims, while the BJP has not nominated any. Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has given one ticket, and Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, which had earlier promised to field 40 Muslims, eventually gave tickets to 21 candidates from the community.

The issue took a sharper turn when Union Minister Chirag Paswan launched a scathing attack on RJD, accusing it of exploiting Muslims as a mere vote bank. Taking to social media platform X, Paswan wrote,

“In 2005, my leader, my father late Ram Vilas Paswan Ji, even sacrificed his party to make way for a Muslim Chief Minister — but you (RJD) did not support him then. RJD was not ready to give a Muslim Chief Minister in 2005, and in 2025 they are still unwilling to give either a Muslim CM or a Deputy CM. If you remain a vote-bank ally, how will you gain respect or true participation?”

Paswan’s remarks triggered sharp political reactions. Responding to the criticism, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, in a media interaction, stated that the possibility of a Muslim being appointed as Deputy Chief Minister was not ruled out, signaling an attempt to pacify concerns within the minority community.

Political analysts, however, see a deeper historical context behind the controversy. Pushpendra Kumar Singh, a former professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), explained that the consolidation of the Muslim-Yadav (MY) alliance under RJD dates back to the aftermath of the 1989 Bhagalpur communal riots.

“Muslims became disenchanted with Congress after its failure to control the communal violence during the Bhagalpur riots and the Ram Rath Yatra. Lalu Prasad Yadav seized that opportunity to project the RJD as a political refuge for Muslims disillusioned with Congress,” Singh said, adding that this MY alliance became the bedrock of RJD’s electoral strength.

On why secular parties hesitate to offer more tickets to Muslim candidates, Singh noted, “These parties fear a possible polarisation of Hindu votes if they field too many Muslims.”

Meanwhile, Congress leader Ali Anwar urged the community to look beyond numbers, asserting that defeating the NDA was essential for preserving democracy.

“Muslims will continue to support the INDIA bloc irrespective of ticket distribution. Democracy will be in danger and dictatorship will be established if the NDA returns to power,” he stated.