Alchemist files nomination as RS candidate for JMM

Vijay Deo Jha | Ranchi Sunday, June 6, 2010

He is an alchemist who has developed passion for politics. Kanwar Deep Singh landed in Ranchi on Saturday as an air-dropped candidate of the JMM to file his nomination for the Rajya Sabha election.

Interestingly, he never figured in the list of the possible candidates of the JMM-AJSU combine till a few days back. Including Mathura Mahato, Hazi Hussain Ansari, Hemlal Murmu another five JMM MLAs seconded his candidature besides two independents-Videsh Singh and Chamra Linda.

Soon after his arrival the JMM held a meeting at the residence of Mathura Mahato to forge a consensus over the name of Singh. A peeved AJSU chief Sudesh Kumar Mahato left the meeting in the middle. “I wanted that local people should be projected as the candidate of the alliance,” he told the media.

“I am not an outsider. I have been associated with Jharkhand for the past seven years,” Singh offered the explanation without any asking. He was addressing a Press conference at the residence of JMM chief Shibu Soren on Saturday evening.

Singh who runs a chain of hospitals in New Delhi and Chandigarh named as Alchemist Hospital Group claims high about his connection with Jharkhand and its people. “I have been running an aviation training institute in Jamshedpur and have trained around 200 people so far,” he said but then conceded having no prior apprenticeship in politics.

He said he had got the inspiration from Shibu Soren, Hemant Soren and Sudesh to join politics. Hemant who was sitting by his side reciprocated in the same gesture and said it was Singh who inspired Soren to open an aviation training institute in Sonasugandh in Dumka. Both showered compliments on each other.

The rookie then showed his political colours. “Sudeshji se meri baat hui hai wo mere saath hai…agar Baba (Shibu Soren) mujhe sansad me Jharkhand ki awaaz banana chahte hai to kya galat hai, (I had a talk with Sudeshji.

He is with me. What’s wrong if Baba wants me to make the voice of Jharkhand in Parliament.)?”

Stating that he had some plans to do some good for Jharkhand in the health sector, he claimed that this was one of his reasons behind joining politics through the Rajya Sabha election. “You can imagine what I can do for Jharkhand…a lot of works are to be done,” Singh rather tried to suggest that he could be a valuable edition for Jharkhand where health care service was not present even in token.

Tragic comedy was at its best display in the Congress-Jharkhand Vikash Morcha (JVM) following the decision of the Congress to field Dhiraj Sahu as the party candidate for the Rajya Sabha.

State Congress president Pradeep Balmuchu applied balm over the hurt sentiment of the JVM at a Press conference pledging the unity of the alliance. Balmuchu refuted the fact that his party had announced the candidate without consulting the JVM which wanted to field its candidate. “We were in regular with JVM chief Babulal Marandi during these days before announcing Sahu’s candidature. But we regret for not consulting the JVM before making a final announcement. We hope that they will understand,” Balmuchu said at a Press conference at the party headquarters.

Marandi held a marathon meeting on Saturday to decide the further course of strategy following the decision of the party. “We understand that people have a lot of expectation from the Congress-JVM alliance. We do not want to break it for petty reasons. But then the Congress did not consult us before announcing the name of Sahu. We have decided to field a JVM candidate in Rajya Sabha election…we are ready for a friendly contest,” JVM general secretary Praveen Singh said soon after the meeting.

The JVM has demanded that the Congress explain how it had announced its candidate without consulting them. The JVM has left enough space for the crisis to defuse. But it depends on the ability of the Congress leadership to convince the JVM the circumstances under which it announced the name of Sahu.

“If they can convince us with genuine and sound logic we might think about changing our stand,” Praveen Singh said. The party has authorised Marandi to take a final decision.

Meanwhile BJP sources said that they were ready to support an independent candidate if they felt that such a candidate had a chance of winning.