Babulal Marandi in attendance, but top oppn leaders absent

RANCHI: While Congress president Rahul Gandhi underlined that the opposition in Jharkhand would play as a team and uproot the BJP governments at the centre and in the state, the top leaders of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) gave Congress’s Parivartan Ulgulan rally a miss.

The main opposition parties in the state—JMM, Congress, JVM (P) and RJD---have proposed a Grand Alliance against the incumbent BJP-led NDA governments at the centre and in the state for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections to be held in April-May, and assembly polls in November-December.

JVM (P) chief and former chief minister Babulal Marandi attended the rally, but the top leaders of the JMM and RJD were conspicuous with their absence. JMM sent vice president Stephen Marandi as its representative while the RJD sent its former legislator Ram Chandra Singh to mark their presence.

Trying to put a united face of the opposition in the state, the Congress president told the gathering that the opposition would together defeat the BJP in the upcoming elections.

“I want to make it clear that the opposition here would play as a team. The opposition would win all 14 Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand and defeat the BJP in assembly elections six months later,” Gandhi said.

The four parties have proposed a Grand Alliance in the state, with an agreement that the Congress would contest the maximum number of seats in the Lok Sabha polls, while JMM will get the lion’s share of seats in the assembly elections, with proportionate seat allocations for the JVM (P) and RJD in both the elections.

However, the alliance partners are yet to settle on seat sharing for the Lok Sabha elections.

Earlier, addressing the gathering, JVM (P) chief Babulal Marandi said it was important to stay united and uproot the BJP governments from the centre and the state as the BJP is destroying all constitutional institutions.

“The BJP has failed to deliver even one of its several electoral promises of 2014. On the other hand it is weakening every constitutional body, be it the election commission or the Reserve Bank…we need to uproot them in order to protect the democracy,” Marandi said.

JMM leader Stephen Marandi shared similar sentiments while the RJD representative did not speak.

JVM (P) CHIEF BABULAL MARANDI SAID IT WAS IMPORTANT TO STAY UNITED AND UPROOT THE BJP FROM THE CENTRE AND THE STATE