Guruji enters RS, Jharkhand BJP president wins with 31 votes

Ranchi: JMM patriarch and noted tribal leader Shibu Soren returned to active politics on Friday after he entered the Upper House by securing 30 votes in the 79-member House. The second seat was bagged by BJP’s state president Deepak Prakash with 31 votes while Congress candidate Shahzada Anwar managed to secure only 18 votes, indicating that even this was not free of horse-trading and cross voting.
In the ruling Mahagathbandhan camp, JMM has 29 MLAs, Congress 15 and one from RJD. One MLA each of NCP and CPI(ML) are also extending external support, taking the tally to 47 in the 81-member house, effective strength of which has been reduced to 79 after the death of Congress MLA Rajendra Prasad Singh and chief minister Hemant Soren vacating the Dumka seat having been elected from Barhait. Two MLAs of JVM-P, Bandhu Tirkey and Pradeep Yadav, have joined Congress, but have not been allotted seats in the assembly by the speaker.
Meanwhile, the opposition camp comprises 25 of the BJP, two of Ajsu-P, two Independents — Saryu Rai and Amit Yadav — while one JVM-P MLA, Babulal Marandi, who joined BJP after the polls, taking their strength to 30.
On Friday, BJP got one extra vote than expected and Deepak Prakash won with highest (31) votes of first preference. “It is nothing, but people’s faith in BJP’s leadership. Our candidate got the support of NDA as well as other MLA friends to win with maximum votes. We express our gratitude to the MLAs and congratulate the candidate,” BJP’s national vice-president Om Prakash Mathur said.
Commenting on possible cross voting, JMM central general secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya said both Congress and JMM have remained intact. “We know BJP believes in horse-trading and they might have managed to break someone from our camp. We are looking into the matter,” he said.
Chief minister Hemant Soren expressed happiness over his father being elected with 30 votes of first preference. “BJP never had the required figures to win even a single seat, but it managed to bag 31 votes. It is a clear indication that MLAs were bought and the party somehow managed to win one seat. We have seen how BJP has toppled governments in other states even during the pandemic,” Hemant said stressing that stronger anti-defection laws should be enacted.
Meanwhile, it was a breather for veteran politician Shibu Soren, who returned to active politics after a gap of little over one year. In May last year, he had lost to Sunil Soren of BJP in the Lok Sabha elections.
The 76-year-old from Nemra village of Bokaro district is known for his topsy-turvy political career, which includes a term in the Centre as the coal minister in 2006 when he was sent to jail after being charged in the murder of his personal assistant Shashi Nath Jha. Later, Shibu was acquitted by the court and also served as the CM twice.
Despite being a CM, Shibu never won an assembly election and continues to be the president of JMM even after the reins of the party were taken over by his son Hemant.
Deepak Prakash on the other hand is a BJP loyalist since his youth. Starting his career from Vidyarthi Parishad and Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha, he rose to ranks of the state general secretary of the party and is presently the state president.