Jharkhand: CPML national leader Dipankar Bhattacharya meets Hemant Soren, give signs of closeness

Ranchi, September 11: Amidst political uncertainty in Jharkhand as Governor Ramesh Bais keeps silent on election commission’s opinion on disqualification of chief minister Hemant Soren, a new development was witnessed in Ranchi on Sunday.

Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren had an hour-long meeting CPIML national general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya at the former’s residence in Kanke, Ranchi.

A release issued by chief minister’s secretariat on Sunday evening said that the two leaders held discussion over development works being carried out in the state and other issues in the presence of CPIML MLA from Bagodar Vinod Singh and state party secretary Manoj Bhatt.

But sources in the JMM, leading a Congress-RJD coalition government in Jharkhand said that talks were also held on possible joining of CPIML in the coalition ahead of the 2024 assembly polls.

“We value the support extended to the government by CPML. Their MLA had extended support during the confidence motion vote held in the assembly earlier this month. We would want them to be with us in a formal alliance for the 2024 polls,” said a senior leader of JMM preferring anonymity.

Significantly, Left parties including CPI and CPML are not part of the present state government but have supported the government on issues against the BJP on several occasions.

CPML national leader Dipankar Bhattacharya had in articles has also been critical of the Governor keeping keeping mum over the Election Commission’s response on the BJP complaints against the elections of Chief Minister Hemant Soren and his brother Basant Soren over office of profit allegation which has put the state into political uncertainty.

“Toppling governments, utising central agencies as political tools to target opposition parties and discredit and destabilise opposition governments and implicating activists in fabricated cases and jailing them under draconian laws have been vintage Sangh-BJP strategy to combat and overpower the political and agitational opposition in the country. For democracy to survive, this aggressive power-grabbing expedition will have to be stopped by all means. Bihar gave a fitting rebuff through a political realignment of forces that has left the BJP isolated and ousted from power. Jharkhand too must foil the BJP’s desperate game plan to hijack power,” Dipankar had written in an article in the CPML website last month.