For Kalpana Soren, Assembly bypoll contest could pave way for Jharkhand

Kalpana Soren, Gandey Assembly bypoll

Kalpana Soren. (File)

JMM leadership Thursday announced that jailed former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren’s wife Kalpana Murmu Soren would contest in the Gandey Assembly bypoll to be held on May 20.

The bypoll was necessitated after MLA Sarfaraz Ahmad resigned as legislator. Since then, there have been speculation that Kalpana Soren would contest the elections in case ED arrested Hemant Soren.

State BJP had alleged that Ahmad was made to quit to facilitate Kalpana to contest polls to ensure she would replace her husband as CM if he was arrested.

Read | https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/kalpana-sorens-avenger-avatar-jmm-9205708/

On February 1, Soren was arrested in a money laundering case and Champai Soren took charge. Over the next one month, Kalpana became active in public life and went to the Gandey constituency for her first rally in support of her husband.

Kalpana Soren to contest Gandey Assembly bypoll

Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren with wife Kalpana Soren (Facebook/ Hemant Soren)

“One of the reasons behind Ahmad’s resignation was that if Soren stepped down as CM, then any non-legislator who replaced him could fight the bypoll from Gandey within six months. However, as things stand, Kalpana Soren taking charge of things publicly and the JMM cadre related to her. Senior cadre members also became confident of her leadership skills. Now, if she wins, it would be easy for her to become the CM,” said a JMM insider.

Read | Two empty chairs for their husbands, Sunita Kejriwal & Kalpana Soren take centre stage

Asked about why Gandey seat, and not any other reserved seat, another insider said for people who are born outside the state cannot take the benefit of reservation in contesting Assembly polls.

“She is not a member of the Scheduled Tribe of Jharkhand, so she can’t take the benefit of the reservation,” the insider said.

Gandey assembly seat has been represented by Ahmad thrice. In 1980, he won the seat (in the then Bihar state) for the first time on a Congress ticket. After the creation of Jharkhand, he won again in 2009 as a Congress candidate. Later, Ahmad quit the Congress and won from Gandey on a JMM ticket in the 2019 Assembly elections.

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