Coalition partners slug it out for ‘Home
’Vijay Deo Jha Ranchi
Pix by Malay Kumar
Pix by Malay Kumar
Battle for ‘Home’ is public now. Denial of Home portfolio to the AJSU chief and Deputy Chief Minister, Sudesh Mahato, led to a high-tension political drama on Wednesday. Within a fortnight of assuming power, the coalition partners of Shibu Soren-led NDA-JMM-AJSU Government started facing discord.
Mahato held a five-hour long marathon meeting with his party MLAs on Wednesday. Soren remained adamant and refused to send any of his emissaries to persuade the AJSU to fall in line. BJP State president and deputy Chief Minister Raghuwar Das, however, reached to persuade Mahato on late evening.
Trying to play down the issue, Das termed it a case of misunderstanding among the coalition partners. He hoped: “It will be sorted out within couple of days…we will put this issue before the CM tomorrow for discussion.”
Mahato, who rescheduled the timing of the Press briefing thrice, however, tried to remain tight-lipped over the decision taken during the meeting with his MLAs. Standing along with Das; Mahato was pressed to answer as to why he convened an emergency meeting of the party MLAs day after the allocation of portfolios.
“From a long time we did not sit together. It was an informal meeting, nothing else.” But Mahato dropped enough hint of his displeasure over the non-allocation of Home to him. “I do not think it is a big issue…but promise is promise.” And the promise meant Home to Mahato, the department the young Minister likes the most.
The AJSU has blamed the JMM for not keeping its promise of giving the Home department which it claimed was agreed during the post-poll alliance among the NDA, the JMM and the AJSU party.
Sources present in the AJSU meeting said that Mahato was quite unhappy after Soren also kept the portfolio of mines and geology. In his meeting with Das, Mahato is also reported to have raised objection after one of the ministers from the party quota Uma Kant Rajak got only one portfolio: Labour and Employment.
Soren, during the allocation of portfolios on Tuesday, retained Home. The AJSU having five MLAs in Soren-led NDA-JMM-AJSU Government got three ministerial berths.
Meanwhile Soren justified the allocation of the portfolio. Well-placed sources in the CM House confided Soren having held an emergency meeting this evening. “He is not in the mood to hand over Home to anybody. He is not in the mood to bend further beyond the point. The Chief Minister, so far, has not opened any communication channel with the AJSU. AJSU got a good number of plum departments…what else they want?”
Sources in the JMM said that Soren has been advised to keep Home department with him. JMM’s spin doctors exulted high hope that the controversy would not graduate beyond the media column.
“One cannot rule out the possibility that Soren would ultimately buy peace with the AJSU to save his Government by conceding its demand,” a senior Cabinet Minister said. Soren is quite keen to keep Vigilance and other key departments falling under Home with him. Home will be for the namesake in that case.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/229230/Coalition-partners-slug-it-out-for-‘Home’.html
Mahato held a five-hour long marathon meeting with his party MLAs on Wednesday. Soren remained adamant and refused to send any of his emissaries to persuade the AJSU to fall in line. BJP State president and deputy Chief Minister Raghuwar Das, however, reached to persuade Mahato on late evening.
Trying to play down the issue, Das termed it a case of misunderstanding among the coalition partners. He hoped: “It will be sorted out within couple of days…we will put this issue before the CM tomorrow for discussion.”
Mahato, who rescheduled the timing of the Press briefing thrice, however, tried to remain tight-lipped over the decision taken during the meeting with his MLAs. Standing along with Das; Mahato was pressed to answer as to why he convened an emergency meeting of the party MLAs day after the allocation of portfolios.
“From a long time we did not sit together. It was an informal meeting, nothing else.” But Mahato dropped enough hint of his displeasure over the non-allocation of Home to him. “I do not think it is a big issue…but promise is promise.” And the promise meant Home to Mahato, the department the young Minister likes the most.
The AJSU has blamed the JMM for not keeping its promise of giving the Home department which it claimed was agreed during the post-poll alliance among the NDA, the JMM and the AJSU party.
Sources present in the AJSU meeting said that Mahato was quite unhappy after Soren also kept the portfolio of mines and geology. In his meeting with Das, Mahato is also reported to have raised objection after one of the ministers from the party quota Uma Kant Rajak got only one portfolio: Labour and Employment.
Soren, during the allocation of portfolios on Tuesday, retained Home. The AJSU having five MLAs in Soren-led NDA-JMM-AJSU Government got three ministerial berths.
Meanwhile Soren justified the allocation of the portfolio. Well-placed sources in the CM House confided Soren having held an emergency meeting this evening. “He is not in the mood to hand over Home to anybody. He is not in the mood to bend further beyond the point. The Chief Minister, so far, has not opened any communication channel with the AJSU. AJSU got a good number of plum departments…what else they want?”
Sources in the JMM said that Soren has been advised to keep Home department with him. JMM’s spin doctors exulted high hope that the controversy would not graduate beyond the media column.
“One cannot rule out the possibility that Soren would ultimately buy peace with the AJSU to save his Government by conceding its demand,” a senior Cabinet Minister said. Soren is quite keen to keep Vigilance and other key departments falling under Home with him. Home will be for the namesake in that case.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/229230/Coalition-partners-slug-it-out-for-‘Home’.html
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