Senior BJP leader Mr Arun Jaitley, reacting on the BJP’s withdrawal of support to the Shibu Soren-led coalition government on Monday, said: “We tried effectively to ensure and lead a non-Congress government in Jharkhand but we did not succeed, so we decided enough is enough. We can’t try any further.” He claimed the decision was taken on Sunday evening after consulting and discussing with each member of the parliamentary board. “It was a unanimous decision,” Mr Jaitley added.
The BJP, frustrated by Mr Soren’s frequent flip-flops following the agreement about his stepping down on May 25, took the extreme step 27 days after first deciding to plug out of the coalition government led by Mr Soren. With Mr Soren’s increasing proximity to the Congress and his statement on Sunday that he had received a Congress offer to become a Union minister, it was a foregone conclusion that the 66-year-old tribal satrap would not step down on May 25 to pave way for a BJP-led government in Jharkhand.
“We decided to withdraw support because of Shibu Soren’s frequent flip-flops after our May 18 agreement and the horse-trading activities started by the Congress,” said BJP leader and deputy chief minister Raghubar Das. Former BJP chief minister and MP Arjun Munda said: “The Congress is trying to vitiate Jharkhand’s political atmosphere. Now the BJP’s course of action would be decided by the party’s parliamentary board”. Both Mr Das and Mr Munda were part of the BJP delegation that met the governor to withdraw support.
But Mr Das appeared still optimistic about chances of survival of the JMM-BJP government. “Nothing is final in politics,” he said when asked if all the ways for rapprochement between the two parties were closed.
In the wake of BJP withdrawing support to the Shibu Soren government, the Congress reacted by saying that stability factor would be crucial in any exercise for government formation.
“We are watching the developments. We are putting our minds together to save Jharkhand from collapse,” Congress in-charge for Jharkhand, Mr K. Keshav Rao said. In the next two days, the party will discuss the Jharkhand issue from all angles and arrive at a decision, he said.