BJP puts withdrawal of support to JMM on hold

In a hurriedly convened Parliamentary Board meeting, BJP decided to explore the option of forming a government in Jharkhand, party sources said. However, the party is in a quandary on the issue whether a tribal or a non-tribal should lead the government.

The sources said a section in the BJP Central unit feels making its Lok Sabha MP and former External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha the Chief Minister would provide more political stability and a better leadership to Jharkhand.

However, another section in the party and many in the state unit feel Arjun Munda should be the Chief Minister of the tribal-dominated state.

"BJP Parliamentary Board has decided that party leaders will talk to our alliance partners in Jharkhand, namely, JMM, JD(U) and AJSU, and our state unit leadership to take a decision on the proposal of Hemant Soren," senior BJP leader Ananth Kumar said.

Till then the decision to withdraw support to Shibu Soren Government has been put on hold, he said.

Yesterday, Jharkhand Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Raghuvar Das had sought appointment with Governor M O H Farooq thrice but did not meet him in the wake of backdoor negotiations between the party and JMM.

In an earlier letter, Shibu Soren had apologised to the BJP top brass for voting against the cut motions in the Lok Sabha. Yesterday evening, Hemant had written a letter to BJP President Nitin Gadkari pledging support to a BJP-led government in the state.