With the State’s Chief Electoral Officer sending its recommendation to the Election Commission about vacancy having arisen at Silli and Gomia Assembly segments, future political discourse has started taking shape in Jharkhand.
In a sense, it is perceived more as a ‘litmus’ test for coalitions than individual parties.
The two seats have fallen vacant following conviction and disqualification of Amit Mahto and Yogendra Prasad.
It is learnt that despite its ‘words’ given to the JMM by the Congress to accept leadership of former Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the national party is yet to make up its mind about the two bypolls expected in May-June.
This is when both the seats were bagged by the JMM in the last Assembly elections.
“We have not decided yet and are focusing more on municipal elections as of now. Once the polls are over on April 16, we would sit together and decide which way to go (in the bye polls),” said Jharkhand Congress chief Ajoy Kumar.
Interesting to note that all the major parties in the State, especially in Opposition’s folder against the ruling BJP at present, were into the arena during the 2014 Assembly elections on both the seats. Some sincere voices in the Congress here find a scope to bargain.
“It is right that we are at present into coalition with the JMM and other likeminded parties but winnability is also a factor which would be taken into consideration before deciding anything. We would talk to the JMM leadership and try our level best to progress the alliance in making,” said a party legislator.The JMM, on the other, is sure to field its candidates on both the seats.
“There is no question about relinquishing our claims over the sitting seats. They (Congress) have also given us commitment to form an alliance centered against the BJP for all upcoming elections, including Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha,” said party general secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya who went on hinting that the ‘close relatives’ of the unseated legislators would be given ticket in the bypoll.
The Shibu Soren-led party is also looking at a recent gift it presented to the Congress in the form of securing a seat in the Rajya Sabha when despite having 18 MLAs in the House, maximum into the Opposition camp, it voted and supported Dheeraj Sahu. Any failure in getting the return gift, the party feels, would be akin to failure of the anti-BJP coalition swelling up here as well as other parts of the country.
Similar is the situation in the NDA folder, till now looking intact with the presence of BJP and AJSU party.
“There is no glitch over Silli seat which has been AJSU’s traditional seat and Sudesh Mahto is going to contest the bye election and other future elections from there. As far as Gomia is concerned, we had contested from that seat in 2014 and faired second with 60000 votes.
There was no representation of AJSU from that seat in the past,” said a senior BJP functionary off the record.
However, AJSU is staking claims to both the seats and has pitched former bureaucrat Lambodar Mahto from Gomia, but with a pinch of twist understandably for the sake of coalition.
“He has been told to prepare grounds. We would bargain hard for the seat with the BJP. If failed, then the understanding can be found out for general election.
If the BJP wins the bye poll the seat would remain with them in 2019 else it would come to our way,” said a senior AJSU leader.