BJP, JD(U) may not tie up for Jharkhand elections
THE BJP IS LIKELY TO TIE-UP WITH SUDESH MAHTO-LED AJSU, WHICH FIELDED CANDIDATES IN 8 SEATS IN 2014 STATE ELECTIONS
Kumar Uttam letters@hindustantimes.com
NEW DELHI: The Janata Dal (United) led by Bi h ar chief minister Ni tish Kumar, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are unlikely to forge an alliance for the Jharkhand assembly elections, due in December, two people familiar with the matter said.
The two parties are part of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre, and run a coalition government in Bi har.“T he JD( U) does not bring much on the table in J hark hand ,” said a senior B JP leader inJh arkhand .“We need to contest maximum number of seats to achieve the target of winning more than 65 out of total 81 assembly seats.”
No party has ever secured majority on its own in any of the three assembly elections in the state since it was carved out of Bihar in November 2000.
The B JP and JD( U) were partners in J hark hand but they split in 2013 when Kumar walked out of the NDA, opposing Narendra Mo di’ s elevation as head ofBJP’ s campaign committee for the 2014 parliamentary election.
Even otherwise, the JD(U)’s fortune was on a continuous decline in the tribal state; accordingto2011 census tribal sac count for 26% of 32.9 million population in Jharkhand.
The JD( U) had won 6 seats and a 4% vote share in the first assembly election in 2005, but slipped to 2 seats and a vote share of 2.8% in 2009 . It was a BJP ally in both these elections. The party could not win a single seat in the last assembly election.
The BJP is likely to have an alliance with its long-time partners, the All Jharkhand Students’ Union (AJSU) led by former minister Sudesh Mahto, which fielded candidates in 8 seats in 2014 assembly polls.
The BJP had an alliance with AJSU for the April-May parliamentary elections as well, and swept the polls in Jharkhand, winning 12 of the 14 Lok Sabha seats while the Congress and the Jharkh and Mu ktiM or ch a( J MM) bagged one each. “Under such a scenario, there is no scope for a third partner in NDA in Jharkhand,” the BJP leader added.
A senior JD(U) leader said Kumar was inclined to invest in J hark hand, which has a size able population of other backward classes (OBC), and revive the party’ s fortune. Most of the JD( U) legislators have been from the O BC communities, and won from constituencies bordering Bihar. “We will treat December election as an occasion to build the foundation of a stronger party in that state,” a senior JD(U) functionary close to Nitish Kumar said.
A section of the JD(U) was inclined to explore possibilities of a pact with the Bhartiya Janta Party( B JP ), but Kumar’ s trusted lieu tenants were believed to have shot down the idea, claiming the party was not in a position to extract a good deal from the saffron party.
“We will wait for our time,” the JD(U) leader added.
Vi dy aB hush an Mis hr a, a Ranchi-based journalist and political analyst, said the BJP was not dependent on the JD( U) in J harkhand.
“The JD(U) has also lost to rival parties many of its veterans, who came from OBC communities, and gaveKumar’s partya standing in Jharkhand. The presence orabsenceofJD(U) isnotgoingto make much of a difference to the BJP.”