Hemant Soren had resigned as the chief minister of Jharkhand shortly before his January 31 arrest, paving the way for his uncle, Champai Soren to ascend to the top post.
Hemant Soren is set to return as the chief minister of Jharkhand for a third time following a meeting of JMM-led alliance MLAs where reportedly a consensus was reached among the legislators, paving the way for JMM executive president’s return to the state’s top post.
Citing Raj Bhavan sources, a PTI report said Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren, who was sworn-in as the 12th CM of the state on February 2 following Hemant’s arrest earlier this year, may resign soon and has sought an appointment with Governor CP Radhakrishnan on Wednesday evening.
Champai Soren will meet the Jharkhand governor at 7:30 PM tonight and it is being speculated that he will tender his resignation from the post of chief minister.
As per the PTI report, citing JMM sources, leaders and MLAs of the JMM-led ruling alliance held a meeting at Champai Soren’s residence on Wednesday afternoon where they unanimously elected Hemant Soren as the JMM legislature party leader.
“A decision was taken in the meeting to make Hemant Soren as the Chief Minister of the state again,” they said.
Congress’s Jharkhand in-charge Ghulam Ahmad Mir and its state president Rajesh Thakur also attended the meeting, besides Hemant Soren’s brother Basant and wife Kalpana.
If sworn in, Hemant Soren will be the 13th chief minister of Jharkhand, which was carved out of Bihar on November 15, 2000.
Hemant Soren Arrest
Earlier, on Friday, June 28, Hemant Soren was released from the Birsa Munda Jail after the state high court granted bail to him in an alleged money laundering case, observing that he was prima facie not guilty, and there was no likelihood of the petitioner committing an offence on bail.
Soren had resigned as chief minister shortly before his January 31 arrest, paving the way for his uncle, Champai Soren to ascend to the top post.
Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with an alleged money laundering case linked to the ‘illegal’ possession of 8.36 acres of land.
JMM a family venture, outsiders have no future: BJP
Meanwhile, opposition BJP slammed the decision to make Hemant Soren CM again, accusing the JMM of being a family-dominated party where outsiders have no political future.
“The Champai Soren era is over in Jharkhand. In the family-oriented party, people outside the family have no political future. I wish the chief minister drew inspiration from Bhagwan Birsa Munda and stood up against the corrupt Hemant Soren ji,” BJP MP Nishikant Dubey wrote on X.
Jharkhand BJP president Babulal Marandi asserted that the tribals outside Shibu Soren’s family are only temporary faces in JMM. That family believes in using people as per their needs and requirements, he alleged.
Hemant is a son of Shibu Soren.
Marandi alleged that the real face of JMM, which had talked about rising above nepotism and electing a new chief minister five months ago, has once again been exposed. The BJP leader claimed that Champai Soren, who is known as the “tiger of Kolhan” in political circles, has been turned into a mouse today.
(With PTI inputs)
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