Jharkhand Chief Minister Sambhai Soren resigned on Wednesday. Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) working president Hemant Soren, who was the Chief Minister before him, has paved the way for his return as Chief Minister.
Sambhai Soran on Wednesday evening Governor C.P. He met Radhakrishnan and submitted his resignation letter. After that Hemant Soran submitted his demand to form the government. Earlier in the day, 45 MLAs of the ruling coalition elected former chief minister Hemant Soren as their leader. And, according to party internal affairs, they convinced Sambhai to step down for a smooth transfer of power.
However, the Governor asked Sambhai to retain his post till alternative arrangements were made. The date of the swearing-in ceremony was announced by C.P. Radhakrishnan will decide.
A source who was present at the meeting where Hemant Soren was re-elected as the Legislative Assembly party leader said, “Sambai Soren was made Chief Minister to avoid any instability. Also, the Hemant-led Grand Alliance, which won the majority in the 2019 elections, got the people’s mandate. However, there was initial reluctance on Sambhai Soran’s part. If anything, Sambhai was later appeased, citing some instability in the government in case of trouble. After some hesitation he was ready to give up his post.
Hemant Soran met Governor CP Radhakrishnan on Wednesday evening.
Sources say that after a smooth transition of power, Hemant Soran will try to fulfill the remaining promises and that will build his base with the public for the upcoming assembly elections. On the campaign trail, the JMM leader will also talk about the fact that he was “imprisoned for 5 months in a false case, forcing him to quit the post of chief minister,” JMM members said.
Hemant got bail on June 28, 5 months after his arrest. The Jharkhand High Court said it had reason to believe that he was not guilty of the money laundering charge brought against him in connection with the land in Ranchi. Many JMM members were surprised that their party leader was granted bail.
In his first speech after coming out of jail, the JMM working president told the party functionaries that he had received information that the Assembly elections may be announced early and he was ready for it.
Jharkhand BJP president Babulal Marandi attacked JMM for supporting family politics. Also, tribal leaders outside the Hemant Soran family are only ‘kam salao’ (temporary selections),” he said. He said the Hemant Soran family would use them as they wished and would discard them ‘like a fly in milk’. Marandi said other tribal leaders in the ruling party have lessons to learn from this episode.
