Bihar Assembly polls: JMM accuses RJD of 'political cheating', decides to go solo in seven seats

Ranchi: Jharkhand Mukti Morcha on Tuesday accused RJD of “politically cheating” them and announced that it will contest alone on seven seats in Bihar elections. Though not a formal member of the Grand Alliance in Bihar, Lalu Prasad’s party that spearheads the opposition coalition there had declared last week that it will accomodate the Jharkhand ruling party from its quota of 144 seats. JMM General Secretary Supriyo Bhattachaya told PTI-Bhasha that they have decided to go alone in Bihar polls due to “political cheating” by Lalu Prasad’s party. He said the party will contest seven assembly seats located on borders with the state that will witness voting in the second and third phases. This number could also increase later, he added. JMM has no legislator in the outgoing house in Bihar. JMM which has made the lone RJD MLA in Jharkhand a minister was expecting kind treatment from Prasad’s party in the neighbouring state. Asked if this would have any impact on the ruling coalition of JMM-Congress-RJD in Jharkhand, Bhattcharya answered in negative. Bhattacharya who is also party’s chief spokesman said “RJD should not forget that we gave them a handsome number of seats in 2019 Jharkhand Assembly election more than its ‘haisiyat’ (capacity) and also made the lone MLA of the party a minister”. Taking a swipe at RJD chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, he said “the man who has become a new leader of the party seems to have forgotten everything”. “We waited till today but the situation has become clear to us and we decided to fight the Bihar polls alone,” the JMM General Secretary said. While declaring the seat-sharing formula for Bihar elections on Friday last, Tejashwi Yadav had said that his party will accomodate JMM and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) from its quota of 144 seats out of total 243 seats. VIP has already pulled out of the grand alliance and is expected to be accomodated by the BJP from its share of seats. And now JMM has also decided to have no truck with the RJD-led coalition in the October-November polls in Bihar. Hemant Soren himself had met the RJD supremo in RIMS and held seat-sharing talks for Bihar elections. Prasad is in jail in Ranchi after being convicted in four cases of multi-crore rupees fodder scam.