‘Learnt lessons from Maharashtra’ — Jharkhand BJP, Congress & others keeping options open

BJP is looking at former ally AJSU & Babulal Marandi’s JVM(P) for post-poll tie-up, Congress too is not closed to the option of partnering Marandi.

Representational image of election rally | Photo: ANI

Ranchi: With the five-phase Jharkhand assembly elections drawing to a close Friday and political observers predicting a neck-and-neck contest, all parties including the BJP, Congress and smaller units like JVM(P) are keeping their options open for possible post-poll alliances.

While the BJP is looking at former ally AJSU and former chief minister Babulal Marandi’s JVM(P), the Congress too is not closed to the option of partnering Marandi.

Sources in the BJP told ThePrint that it is not leaving anything to chance in Jharkhand following the experience in Maharashtra last month, where it could not form the government despite emerging as the single largest party.

“We are reaching out to like-minded parties to explore the possibility of a post-poll alliance,” said a senior BJP leader, who did not want to be named.

In 2014, the BJP had formed the government in alliance with AJSU. While the BJP got 37 seats, AJSU won five seats. A year later, six MLAs from Marandi’s JVM(P) joined the BJP to take its tally to 48 — six more than the majority of 42 seats in the 81-member assembly.

But AJSU broke away from the BJP just before this year’s assembly elections, and is now contesting on its own from 42 seats. BJP is contesting on 79.

Asked if BJP would reach out to AJSU if the election results are inconclusive, Chief Minister Raghubar Das told ThePrint in Jamshedpur, “Let’s wait for 23 December (results announcement date). In politics, all options are always open.”

Das added that the BJP had tried to maintain the alliance. “But the allies have become very ambitious,” he said.

Since it became a state in 2000, Jharkhand has seen only the incumbent Raghubar Das-led BJP government complete a full five-year term in office.

Babulal Marandi could play key role

In a scenario where no party gets a majority, former CM Babulal Marandi’s JVM(P) could play kingmaker. The party is contesting on all 81 seats.

JVM(P) had allied with the Congress-JMM-RJD alliance before the Lok Sabha elections this year, but walked out of the grouping ahead of the polls following dispute over seat-sharing.

The Congress is fighting on 31 seats, while the JMM and the RJD are contesting 43 and seven seats, respectively.

Sources said BJP has also sent feelers to the JVM(P). However, Marandi said his party will not have any truck with the BJP.

“In 2014, we had eight MLAs. Had we wanted, we could have joined hands with anybody. But we chose against it. As a result, six of our eight MLAs were lured away with money and offer of post in the BJP government. Two were made ministers, others were given post in different boards,” Marandi told ThePrint in Ranchi.

JVM(P) has a voter base among the Other Backward Classes community, which constitutes 46 per cent of the state’s population, according to Census 2011.

Marandi was earlier with the BJP and was the state’s first CM. He later left to form JVM(P) and had an alliance with the Congress in 2009. He said he wanted a coalition this time too but his experience in the past did not give him confidence.

“In 2009, we had a coalition with Congress. In 2014, despite talks, coalition did not happen. Elections started and we were sitting in Delhi for a decision on alliance. At night, it was decided that JVM(P) will fight on 28 seats. But next day before we were going to meet the press, Congress decided that there will be no coalition,” he said.

The JVM(P) chief said his party had to face a lot of issues because of the late call.

“This time too, I had started talks to form an alliance just after 2019 Lok Sabha elections. But both Congress and JMM did not seem interested. I thought that if I had waited for them, our condition would have been like 2009 and 2014.

“We told them we can’t wait any further and will go to the people on our own,” Marandi said.

Alluding to former CM Shibu Soren’s JMM, Marandi said political parties in Jharkhand do not have any ideology. “In 2009, we had 11 MLAs but we did not go with anybody. JMM and BJP had 18 MLAs each. They joined hands to form the government, though they had fought separately.”

Marandi pointed out that the BJP and the JMM have formed government together not once but twice.

Even faction-ridden Congress has kept its door open

The Congress, riddled with factionalism, has also not closed the door completely on the JVM(P). A section of the party is still in favour of joining hands with Babulal Marandi.

Jharkhand Congress campaign head Subodh Kant Sahay told ThePrint, “I was very much for JVM(P) being part of the alliance. I have known Babulal Marandi for long. But he decided to contest all seats, so that has become a problem.”

Asked if the Congress is open to joining hands with Marandi’s party after 23 December, Sahay said, “Let’s wait for the result. We will see after that. I can only say one thing that we have learnt our lesson from Maharashtra.”

JMM chief Hemant Soren, however, expressed confidence that the Congress-JMM-RJD alliance will get enough seats to form government on its own. “We won’t require any outside support,” he said.