BJP alone will win more than 65 seats: J’khand CM

RANCHI: Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das said on Thursday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would achieve its target of 65-plus seat in the House of 81 on its own workers even as its alliance with the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) Party stares at an uncertain future.

Speaking to reporters at the party’s state headquarters in Ranchi, the CM said, “In the core committee meeting, chaired by the party national president [Amit Shah], we had resolved to get 65 plus seats on our own. Our workers and leaders from booth to the state level are working to achieving that target.”

The BJP is fighting the Congress-jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) alliance to retain power in the state under the leadership of Das. But its alliance with the AJSU hit hurdles after its ally named several candidates on the seats from where the BJP too fielded its nominees.

Also on Thursday, the BJP released its third list of 15 candidates for the Jharkhand assembly polls, taking to 68 the total number of seats for which it has declared its nominees. The

RANCHI: Former Jharkhand Congress president, Pradeep Balmuchu, on Thursday joined the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) Party, becoming the third former chief of the Congress’s state unit to switch sides ahead of the upcoming state elections.

For the November-december polls, the Congress did not field Balmuchu from Ghatsila, the seat from which he was elected to the state assembly thrice. The reserved seat was allotted to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) as part of the seat-sharing pact between allies Congress, the JMM and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).

Addressing a press conference

AJSU has demanded at least 17 seats, which the BJP has not accepted. The BJP also extended support to independent Vinod Singh on Hussainabad seat it had left for the AJSU, in another sign of deteriorating ties.

On Tuesday, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president Chirag Paswan announced that his alongside AJSU chief, Sudesh Mahto, Balmuchu said: “I have represented Ghatsila thrice in the past... I had been preparing to contest from the seat and I would have cheated my supporters and voters if I chose to contest from somewhere else. So, I had a discussion with my supporters and decided to join AJSU. The decision is aimed at protecting my rajnaitik zameen (political base),” he said.

Jharkhand Congress spokesperson Kishore Shahdeo admitted that the party needed to ensure that people did not leave its fold but said the senior leaders that joined other parties did so out of their own vested interests.

party will contest 50 seats in the Jharkhand assembly elections, making it clear his party will not fight the elections in an alliance with the BJP.

The elections are scheduled to be held in five phases between November 30 and December 20. Results will be out on December 23.