Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren on Wednesday expressed confidence of passing the floor test which he faces in the Assembly on Thursday.
“Yes, definitely I am confident of winning the confidence motion,” Mr. Soren said here.
65-year-old Soren took oath as chief minister for the third time on December 30.
Mr. Soren, who heads the five-party coalition, including NDA, claimed to have the support of 46 MLAs, including the Speaker (of BJP), in the 81-member House.
Besides his 18-member JMM-LP, Soren has the support of 20 MLAs of the NDA, 5 from AJSU Party, one each of Jharkhand Janadhikar Manch and Rashtriya Kalyan Paksh and one Independent.
The independent MLA, Bidesh Singh told newsmen during the day that he would vote for Mr. Soren during the trust vote.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Shibu Soren’s son Hemant and daughter-in-law Sita took oath as members of Jharkhand assembly on Wednesday.
Mr. Hemant, Soren’s second son, had won the Dumka seat defeating former deputy chief Minister Stephen Marandi.
Ms. Sita, widow of eldest son Durga, had trounced BJP’s Manoj Kumar Singh from Jama seat.
Both of them are first timers in the assembly.
Mr. Soren, who heads a five-party coalition and is a Lok Sabha member, has to win a seat to enter the house within six months of taking over the reins of the state.
JD(U)’s Krishna Gopal Patar, who had defeated Mr. Soren in a by-poll last January forcing the veteran to resign from the chief ministership, also took oath during the day.
Interstingly, JD(U) is part of NDA which is supporting Soren this time.
Former ministers Harinarayan Rai (Ind) and Anosh Ekka (Jharkhand Party), now in judicial custody in a disproportionate assets case, are yet to take oath.
