Soren forms own grand alliance for two bypolls

RANCHI: Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) working president Hemant Soren has managed to rally all major opposition parties in the state behind its candidates for the Silli and Gomia assembly bypolls on May 28 to take on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Soren’s grand alliance rivals in magnitude the one Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav forged for Lok Sabha bypolls earlier this year in Uttar Pradesh, where his party and arch-rival the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) came together to take on the BJP. The JMM chief has got support of the Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) and the Left on board.

The bypolls have been necessitated by the disqualification of JMM legislators from Gomia and Silli, Yogendra Mahto and Amit Mahto, respectively,following their conviction in separate criminal cases earlier this year. The JMM on Friday said it would field the wives of the disqualified legislators in its attempt to retain the seats.

“JMM is best placed in the state to give the BJP a run for its money. And therefore, the parties have decided to support us. We are confident of retaining both Silli and Gomia seats,” Soren said. The BJP and its ally, the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), are all set to lock horns after the latter rejected the BJP’S offer of sharing the two seats and announced candidates for both. While AJSU chief Sudesh Mahto will contest from Silli, the party has fielded former bureaucrat Lambodar Mahto from Gomia.

Following a meeting of the party’s core committee, the BJP on Thursday said that while it will not field a candidate against the AJSU president, it will contest in Gomia.

“The candidate for Gomia would be decided by the central election committee,” said Jharkhand BJP general secretary Deepak Prakash.