5 Jharkhand MLAs form new front led by AJSU
Five legislators in Jharkhand, including two Independents, on Friday announced formation of Jharkhand Loktantrik Morcha, a separate political group in the 81-member state assembly, to raise people’s issues as a single entity both inside and outside the House.
Five legislators in Jharkhand, including two Independents, on Friday announced formation of Jharkhand Loktantrik Morcha, a separate political group in the 81-member state assembly, to raise people’s issues as a single entity both inside and outside the House.
The Morcha includes two legislators of AJSU, Sudesh Mahto and Lambodar Mahto, lone NCP legislator Kamlesh Singh, besides two Independents, Saryu Roy and Amit Yadav. Both Roy and Yadav are former BJP legislators who turned rebels ahead of 2019 assembly polls and won as independents.
Talking to reporters, Roy, who emerged a giant killer defeating the then chief minister Raghubar Das in 2019, said Mahto would lead the front. “We have decided that Sudesh Mahto would chair this front while Amit Yadav would be its whip. This front has ben formed to raise the people’s issues, besides of their respective constituencies, both inside and outside the House,” said Roy.
“Small parties and Independents don’t get adequate time to raise their issues. We will urge the Speaker about giving their front a legal sanctity and allot time in House proceedings accordingly,” said Mahto.
AJSU has always been part of the NDA and shared power until 2019, when it parted ways with the front led by the BJP. However, the party had voted in favour of the successful BJP nominee Deepak Prakash in the Rajya Sabha elections in 2020.
The two Independents had also voted for the BJP candidate. The biennial election for two Rajya Sabha seats from Jharkhand are due in June next year.
The ruling JMM-Congress-RJD combine, a pre-poll alliance, had won 47 seats in the 81-member Jharkhand assembly in 2019. While JMM won 30 seats, Congress won 16 and RJD got one seat. The principal opposition BJP won 25 seats. CPI ((ML) and NCP had win one seat each.
JVM (P) led by Babulal Marandi had won three seats but split soon after the polls. While Marandi merged his party and joined BJP taking its strength in House to 26, the other two joined the Congress taking its effective strength to 18.
Both NCP and CPI (ML) had announced support to the ruling combine. NCP’s Kamlesh Singh said on Friday his decision to become part of the new front has nothing to do with his support to the government and it would continue.
