After pulling out from the BJP-led government in Jharkhand, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leaders on Wednesday held parleys with State Congress leaders in New Delhi to explore the possibility of formation of an alternative government in the State.
JMM leader Hemant Soren, who was Deputy Chief Minister in the Arjun Munda government, told PTI that his party is in favour of forming a >new government in the State that can deliver, arguing that polls require huge spending that ultimately put burden on the electorate.
Sources said Mr Soren had a telephonic talk with AICC in-charge for Jharkhand Shakeel Ahmed who told him to discuss the matter with Jharkhand Congress leader Rajinder Prasad Singh.
JMM and Congress MLAs held parleys today at an undisclosed location to find an alternative in Jharkhand after the exit of the Munda government.
Congress MLAs led by Mr Singh later had a meeting with AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi in the AICC office.
“It’s not clear whether a new government will be formed or not but I want to ascertain the views of all elected representatives of Jharkhand about their responsibility to the people…….I am in favour of forming a new government and it has to be an alliance government since no single party either JMM or Congress has the mandate for it. The thing is that it should be a government, which can deliver,” Mr Soren said.
He, however, parried a query on whether JMM was okay with a government led by a Congress Chief Minister. “My priority is that people’s interests should be protected, whichever government is formed,” was his careful refrain.
Lalu Prasad, whose RJD has five MLAs in the 82-member Jharkhand Assembly, today demanded that the Assembly be kept under suspended animation.
President’s rule recommended?
Jharkhand Governor Syed Ahmed is understood to have recommended President’s rule in the State by keeping the Assembly under suspended animation.
The recommendation was made in his report to the Centre on the political situation in the wake of the > resignation of Chief Minister Arjun Munda who also sought dissolution of the Assembly after JMM withdrew support to his government, sources said.
“I have received the preliminary report from the Jharkhand Governor. I will go through it. Wait for sometime for any decision,” Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde told reporters without giving details.
Mr Munda had resigned yesterday and his Cabinet recommended dissolution of the Assembly.
The present political crisis erupted when BJP’s ruling coalition partner JMM, in a letter to the Governor, formally withdrew its support to the 28-month-old government pushing it into a minority.
