New Delhi: Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi is likely to attend the swearing-in ceremony of JMM leader and Jharkhand Chief Minister designate Hemant Soren on November 28 to showcase unity of the INDIA Bloc. Before that, lobbying for the four ministerial berths that the Congress would get in the coalition government intensified with several newly-elected MLAs trying their luck with the AICC in Delhi.
According to party insiders, JMM leader Hemant Soren was in the national capital on Tuesday to invite Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge for his oath taking ceremony where the leaders were expected to discuss the format of the swearing in; the number of ministers, who will take oath, along with the Chief Minister, as well as the ministerial probables from the grand old party.
“Hemant Soren is in Delhi to invite Rahul Gandhi and Kharge for the swearing in ceremony. If the leaders are available, they will go. Once the format for the event is decided, the high command will finalise the names of the ministers from our quota,” AICC in-charge of Jharkhand Ghulam Ahmed Mir told ETV Bharat.
“The Jharkhand win has defeated the BJP's politics of polarisation and has shown a way forward for the country. The INDIA Bloc government was repeated due to the development and welfare work done over the past five years,” he said. The spectacular second term consecutive win for the INDIA Bloc in Jharkhand against the NDA has come at a time when the alliance suffered a shocking defeat in Maharashtra.
The INDIA bloc not only won a second term, but improved its tally from 47 seats in 2019 to 56 seats in the 81 member Jharkhand Assembly this time. The Congress has won 16 seats and as per a formula agreed upon will get four ministerial posts. The grand old party had demanded the post of deputy chief minister, but the proposal was rejected by Soren, who said there was no need to change the arrangement as the alliance was going strong.
According to Congress insiders, several big leaders, including Banna Gupta, Ajoy Kumar, Amba prasad, Badal Patralekh and KN Tripathi lost the election while several new faces had entered the Assembly and were hopeful of getting a chance to be in the cabinet. Among the old faces, Deepika Pandey Singh, who was made a minister a few months before the elections, may be included in the new cabinet, the party insiders said.
“It is natural that the lawmakers lobby for a ministerial post, but the high command will decide that,” said Mir. Former state unit chief Rajesh Thakur said the BJP had tried to dislodge the previous government headed by Hemant Soren and later even lured away Champai Soren, who had replaced Hemant, while he was in jail, but got no sympathy from the tribal belt.
“That is the message for the saffron party. Hope they get it. As far as the Congress is concerned, we will focus on the implementation of the promises and strengthening of the party organisation,” said Thakur.
Read more: LoP Rahul Gandhi, Other Opposition Leaders Slam Govt Over Sambhal Violence
