Bhojpur (Bihar) [India], October 25 (ANI): BJP MP Manoj Tiwari on Friday said that Pawan Singh, the popular Bhojpuri actor and singer, ruled out contesting the upcoming Bihar assembly elections, instead setting his sights on the parliamentary elections.

'Pawan Singh doesn't even want to contest the assembly elections; he wants to contest as an MP. I got him the ticket from Asansol, and in the future, we will get him to contest the election from the right place...' he said.

While speaking to reporters, he credited the developments in Bihar to the NDA, affirming that the people of the state have already decided to bring the NDA to power, as they know the state's future lies with the party.

'There is tremendous enthusiasm among the people; now people have started to see what development looks like... More than 60 lakh people have received PM Awas; now people have decided that NDA is the best... We are seeing in Bihar that the people of Bihar have decided that we have to embark on another 5-year journey with NDA because Bihar's future is with NDA,' he stated to ANI.

Meanwhile, Pawan Singh was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party but was expelled in 2024 due to his anti-party activities, after he contested as an independent candidate in the Karakat Lok Sabha constituency, defying the official candidate from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The primary contest in Bihar is between the incumbent National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and the Mahagathbandhan led by the RJD.

In the current Bihar Assembly, comprising 243 members, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) consists of 131 members, with the BJP having 80 MLAs, JD(U) having 45, HAM(S) having 4, and the support of 2 Independent Candidates.

Bihar will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and 11. The results will be declared on November 14. (ANI)