In a no-holds-barred attack at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday challenged the party to fight him upfront in the upcoming state’s electoral battle instead of attacking him “from behind like the cowardly British.”
Hitting out at the BJP in a post on X, he said , “Agar himmat hai toh samnse se lado – kayar ki tarah lagatar peeche se vaar kyu? (If you have courage then fight from the front – why keep attacking from behind like the cowardly British?)”
The Jharkhand CM posted a headline of a news article, claiming that a lot of wealth has been spent to spoil his image.
“Sometimes ED, sometimes CBI, sometimes one agency – sometimes someone else. Now billions of rupees have been spent to spoil my image. The situation is strange,” the post added.
He further criticised the “double engine” of concept of the BJP, saying that the government has had power in the state for around 5 years before and has closed down schools, cancelled ration cards and did not conduct the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) exam.
“BJP government is in power at the center for 11 years, in power in the state for 5 years – calling itself a double engine government Then why did only the elephant fly in the five years of Raghubar government? Why were 13000 schools closed in five years? Why were 11 lakh – yes 11 lakh ration cards cancelled in five years?” he asked.
The post further added, “Why was not even one JPSC exam conducted in five years? Why was old age/widow pension not increased and not received in five years? Why did hundreds die of hunger in the state in five years? Why in five years, youth were advised to make bicycles and sell bananas?”
The CM further said that in the future if his government is elected, they will continue to work for the people and in the interest of every Jharkhand person.
The 81-member Jharkhand Assembly will go to polls in two phases on November 13 and 20, with vote counting scheduled for November 23. A total of 2.6 crore voters are eligible to participate, including 1.31 crore male and 1.29 crore female voters, as well as 11.84 lakh first-time voters and 66.84 lakh young voters.
In the 2020 Assembly elections, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) won 30 seats, the BJP won 25 seats, and the Congress won 16 seats. In 2014, the BJP won 37 seats, JMM won 19 seats, and Congress won just 6 seats.
