Patna, Sept 12: Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan's son-in-law Anil Kumar Sadhu, who left the Lok Janshakti Party in March this year to join the Rashtriya Janata Dal, said he is eager to contest against the LJP chief. Sadhu claimed that he will defeat Paswan in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, if the RJD gives him the ticket.

Paswan, an eight-time Lok Sabha MP, is likely to contest from his incumbent seat and bastion, Hajipur. His son-in-law, however, alleged that Paswan is headed for a shock defeat as he has lost the support of SC/ST and Muslims for "submitting to the RSS".

The SC/ST voters are "not bonded labourers", said Sadhu, adding that Paswan will pay a heavy price for abandoning the core principles and ideology of the LJP to "please the BJP and (Rashtriya Swayamsevak) Sangh".

Sadhu claimed that his wife and Paswan's daughter Ashu Paswan is also ready to contest against her brother and Lok Sabha MP Chirag Paswan.

Notably, Sadhu had unsuccessfully contested as an independent in the 2015 Bihar assembly elections. During the polls, he had campaigned against the Paswans as he was denied the ticket by LJP.

In March, he joined the RJD, calling Lalu Prasad Yadav a champion of backward and SC/ST interests. "Unlike other leaders of Bihar, Lalu Prasad will never submit to the RSS," he had said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2018 03:39 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).