New Delhi/Patna: Bhojpuri film star Pawan Singh has rejoined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, in a move party leaders believe could strengthen the NDA in the Shahabad region.
The singer-actor met Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha at his residence in Delhi on Tuesday, with BJP Bihar in-charge Vinod Tawde and party leader Rituraj Sinha also present. Singh touched Kushwaha’s feet to seek blessings, signalling a reconciliation after their bitter fallout during last year’s Karakat Lok Sabha contest.
“Pawan Singh is in the BJP and will remain in the BJP,” Tawde told reporters. “He will actively work for the NDA as a BJP worker in the upcoming Bihar elections.”
Tensions had flared during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections when Singh, denied a BJP ticket from Asansol, contested independently from Karakat. His presence split NDA votes, leading to the defeat of Kushwaha, who was then the NDA candidate, and enabling the Grand Alliance to capture the seat. Singh finished second while Kushwaha suffered a heavy loss, straining ties between the two.
The rift also cost the NDA in other parts of Shahabad and Magadh, where caste-based polarisation intensified. Singh’s appeal among Rajput voters and Kushwaha’s influence in the Koeri community are now seen as crucial for the NDA’s electoral arithmetic.
Local observers believe the rapprochement could help the NDA recover lost ground in South Bihar, where the Grand Alliance prevailed in both the assembly and parliamentary polls. Talks of Singh contesting from Ara or another key constituency on a BJP ticket have further raised the political temperature in Patna.
