Seat Sharing is the vital component of the electoral strategy, but for leaders of INDIA bloc of Jharkhand, using the forum for espousing the cause of the adivasis and poor and fight for their identity and welfare is the primary mission. Leaving aside one or two seats, the opposition leaders have succeeded in thrashing out the complex issue of seat sharing and are now waiting for the arrival of Rahul Gandhi, with his entourage of Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, to formally make it public
Former union minister Subodh Kant Sahay as well as Jharkhand Congress chief Rajesh Thakur candidly observed; “upcoming meeting holds significant importance. But the primary objective is addressing issues like high unemployment, corruption, and inflation affecting the people.” Even before the INDIA bloc took birth, the entire opposition has come together under state chief minister Hemant Soren to fight against the saffron exploitation of the adivasis and poor of the state. Formation of the alliance has merely been an exercise to give it a political shape.
Sahay said that alliance leaders are united and they are determined to defeat the BJP at the Lok Sabha elections. His confidence is born out of the fact that the opposition has not lost its support base. For him 2019 Lok Sabha election was an aberration. The BJP has created nationalist hype, but he is sure that this time the Ram temple would not have that intensity. Even in 2019 election JMM and Congress had managed to win seat each. The BJP-AJSU alliance had won 12 of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
It is the media which has been intentionally creating most of confusion about the seat sharing. It is rumoured that Congress has informed its national leadership that it wants to contest nine out of 14 seats. Senior opposition leaders reject this outright. They have their own argument; the state has only 14 seats. How could they say that Congress is staking claim for nine seats? What does it imply; do they mean to say that JMM, the major party, and other constituents will watch the battle sitting from the side line.
Going by the mood it is apparent that Congress would field candidates in Ranchi, Khunti, Singhbhum, Lohardaga, Dhanbad and Hazaribag. RJD will field its candidates from Chatra and Palamu. CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya speaking on the occasion of 19th Martyrdom Day event of comrade Mahendra Singh said, “If seat sharing takes place in a proper way, INDIA will defeat BJP. And they have to avoid repeating mistakes that were committed in 2019. In that election JVM was part of the gathbandhan, but after winning, its leader Babulal Marandi joined BJP.” The CPI(ML) nevertheless has staked claimed for Bagodar (Giridih). It has not only put forth its claim but has also started the campaign for the Lok Sabha election 2024 by holding a 15-day long yatra.
Dipankar said; “We have conveyed to INDIA block leaders that if they want to win the Koderma seat, they should give it to CPI(ML)”. Already Vinod Singh, son of three time MLA, martyr Mahendra Singh represents Bagodar assembly constituency, a part of Koderma Lok Sabha seat.
Bhattacharya mentioned that the responsibility of a government remains to provide employment, education and health. Railways and buses should function well, this is the work of a government, but now the BJP is mixing it with religion. Opposition closing its rank does not only owe to the need for defeating the BJP. Instead it is also inspired by the fact that it has unleashed terror in the adivasi villages, encouraged the police to perpetrate torture on them on the plea of their nursing soft corner for the alleged Naxalites and grabbing the lands of the poor adivasis. Dipankar said that the party has started a Jan Sangharsh Yatra from January 16 to 30th—the martyr day of Mahendra Singh to Mahatma Gandhi.
The INDIA bloc leaders allege that BJP has turned the Gram Sabhas defunct. Vinod said; “Mahendra Singh had formed Gram Sabhas to liberate forests, government schools, hospitals, and lands from the clutches of goons, and mafias. But the past BJP government destroyed the Gram Sabhas to help the exploiters to carry out their operations in the state.”
Once gathbandhan government came to power, the primary task before the chief minister Hemant Soren and its other leaders was to build tribal unity to fight against ‘destructive and religious fanatics’. The BJP leadership has badly split the adivasis on caste and sub-caste lines. In fact Soren had lamented “Today we are divided and disorganised, which is why the topic of tribal oppression in Manipur is not becoming the topic of the Munda people of Jharkhand”.
Like Soren, his opposition colleagues also share the belief that adivasis have to think on one line and be united as despite having differences in tradition and religion our heritage is the same and our target should also be one. Sotren said; “We need to understand that our problems are also one. I wish that mutual dialogue should start between different tribal groups.”
This approach of Soren has completely unnerved the BJP leadership. In fact Amit Shah’s frequent visit to Jharkhand could not yield the desired result. Modi and Shah had instructed the state BJP leaders to win over the Kurri and Munda communities. But they did not succeed. Having failed in their endeavour, Modi and Shah finally resorted to the tactics of using the ED and CBI against Soren and other leaders. Soren who has on repeatedly accused the Modi government of trying to topple his government using federal agencies like ED, CBI and IT, has also called upon tribals to fight united against such forces. He had even appealed to more than 13 crore tribals living in different states of India; “ time has come to be united and fight against such forces that are out to control our natural resources and demean our identity and culture.”
During the BJP rule of Raghubar Das, the big business and corporate houses have come to acquire huge tracts of Adivasi lands for setting up industries. Adani set up its power plant in Godda for supplying power to Bangladesh. It is a fact that nearly 80 per cent of people displaced because of industries, projects, dams and mines are tribals, but the no effort was made ever made to find out their whereabouts. The development projects were against the interest of the adivasis.
Soren adopting a stern attitude against the exploitative mechanism of the BJP and especially of Modi government had been the primary reason for Modi and Shah harassing him through ED, CBI and IT. Surprisingly instead of succeeding in coercing the opposition, the repressive measures of Modi and Shah have united the opposition. This time they are determined to show the BJP its right place. The stubborn attitude of Hemant and his successive refusals from responding to the ED summons seven successive times, has further emboldened the opposition. Hemant is determined to challenge the hegemony of Modi is also clear from his move to get the state government adopt a resolution that no agency could summon directly any of its officials. It has to send the request to the chief secretary. It would be evaluated and discussed at a high level meet. (IPA Service)
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