Amidst the political turmoil in Jharkhand, there is speculation that Hemant Soren may be arrested. ED is interrogating him regarding the land scam. Even today the ED is reaching the Chief Minister’s residence and interrogating him. According to the information, if the situation of arrest arises, then Hemant can further name Kalpana Soren or Champai Soren as the Chief Minister. Kalpana Soren is the wife of Chief Minister Hemant. However, there is a catch in putting Kalpana’s name forward. He is not an MLA right now and hence he will have to get elected as MLA within 6 months. Now this is where the whole matter can get complicated.
In fact, there are only 11 months left for the assembly elections in Jharkhand. According to the Election Commission rules, by-elections are not held if there is less than a year left for the state assembly elections. If Kalpana Soren’s name goes to Raj Bhavan, then the Governor can seek advice from the Election Commission on this. In such a situation, Kalpana Soren’s case may get entangled in legal complications. The tenure of Jharkhand Assembly is till January 5 only. This could be the reason behind considering names other than Kalpana. Media reports are saying that even today Hemant Soren has held a meeting with the MLAs and discussed further political options.
10 summons, appearance twice
There is speculation in the politics of Jharkhand for the last four days regarding Hemant Soren. Till now, ED has issued summons to him 10 times, but every time he keeps avoiding appearing before ED by giving some reason or the other. Yes, at least once during this period he was present before the ED for questioning. On Monday, ED seized Rs 36 lakh and a BMW from his residence in Shanti Niketan, South Delhi. Today, after completion of ED’s inquiry, people’s eyes will be on what political equation is formed in the state.
