Patna: Amid growing speculation that Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan may transition to state politics, the party’s Bihar in charge, Arun Bharti, on Friday said they want him to contest the upcoming state assembly elections to improve their electoral prospects.Currently, the LJP (Ram Vilas) has no representation in the Bihar assembly. Its sole MLA, Raj Kumar Singh, elected from the Matihani seat in Begusarai district, subsequently joined the JD(U). Chirag is presently a Union minister in the Narendra Modi govt, heading the ministry of food processing industries. Contesting state elections would mean resigning from the Union cabinet, but the party says his top priority is now “the development of Bihar and Biharis”.Interestingly, PM Narendra Modi has already kick-started the NDA’s campaign for the assembly elections, visiting Bihar twice within a month, a move seen as a sign of the BJP’s determination to win the state.Speaking to TOI on Friday, Arun Bharti, who is also the MP from Jamui, said, “The party’s state working committee has sent a formal proposal to Chirag to contest elections from Bihar for the party’s better poll prospects.” Emphasising Chirag’s commitment to the state’s development, Bharti added that he “could go to any extent to achieve that goal”.Bharti described Chirag as the “most talented” youth within the NDA and a potential future chief minister. “Among all the promising youths from the NDA who could be given leadership of the state, Chirag Paswan appears to be the strongest contender. However, after Nitish Kumar…” he said, without completing the thought. He, however, refrained from commenting on seat-sharing discussions.During an interaction with mediapersons in Hajipur on Thursday evening, Chirag had said the matter was under active discussion within the party. “The party is debating the issue and also conducting a survey on whether his contesting elections will benefit the party and the ruling alliance,” he said.However, political observers said Chirag entering the assembly poll fray could intensify the internal power struggle within the NDA in Bihar.Sources close to the party said it is demanding a respectable share of seats under the seat-sharing agreement, citing its 100% strike rate in the last two Lok Sabha elections and its ability to transfer votes to allies. In the 2020 assembly elections, Chirag fielded LJP candidates against JD(U) nominees in at least 145 constituencies after alliance talks failed. Though the party secured just one seat, it dealt a severe blow to Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), pushing it to third place.