New tribal face for state Congress

Sukhdeo Bhagat, who will replace Balmuchu Ranchi/New Delhi, May 13: The Congress today appointed Sukhdeo Bhagat (47) as the Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee (JPCC) president, amid growing clamour in favour of Rajya Sabha MP Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu who was hoping for an extension. The decision, thereby, foiled a last-ditch effort by Balmuchu, who was planning a massive tribal rally in Ranchi on May 19 — with Rahul Gandhi in attendance — to impress upon the party high command his “worthiness”. The Congress central leadership, however, was not keen to extend his tenure. With the change in guard, the rally has also been postponed. Sources close to party vice-president Rahul revealed he wanted the new state leadership to take a fresh call on the proposed tribal meet. Bhagat’s appointment became apparent on Saturday when party president Sonia Gandhi summoned him to her residence in Delhi and asked him to prepare for the big job. State Congress in-charge Shakeel Ahmed said a notification in this regard was issued in the afternoon today. “He is comparatively young and popular. We hope that he will energise the party,” he said. Soon after the announcement was made by party general secretary Janardan Dwivedi in Delhi today, Bhagat, a prominent tribal leader who belongs to the Oraon tribe, said, “We have a strong base of activists in the state. The challenge before me is to encourage them to take up people’s causes. “I will also try to work towards better co-ordination between senior party leaders and activists at the ground level.” A former Jharkhand state administrative officer who did his MPhil from Delhi University, Bhagat has been elevated to the state’s top post at a time when the support base and electoral fortunes of the faction-ridden party have taken a hit. In Jharkhand, the party is already divided in two major factions lead by two party stalwarts Balmuchu and Subodh Kant Sahay, respectively. “It will be a tightrope walk for Bhagat. He will get only six months to streamline everything as the Assembly polls are expected at the end of this year,” a Congress leader said. Bhagat, a former MLA from Lohardaga, and Sisai MLA Gitashree Oraon were the front runners for the job. But, being a rookie in politics and lesser known figure, the daughter of former Congress stalwart Kartik Oraon had make way for him. According to sources, Rahul wanted a non-controversial name from the tribal community, preferably from the Sarna faith, to reconnect the party with its tribal and non-tribal constituents. Balmuchu, who was in office for more than seven years, is a Christian belonging to the Ho tribe and apparently, there was no known face who could replace him, except Bhagat — considered to be close to the Gandhi scion. By and large, Christian tribals are still with the Congress in Jharkhand. With BJP trying to regain its hold over tribals belonging to the Sarna faith through RSS-backed organisations, Bhagat seems to be the Congress answer to the saffron party’s tactics. Followers of the Sarna faith, which, the RSS claims, is very close to Hinduism, have been seeking a distinct identity. It was their undaunted support that had helped Congress stalwarts like Bandi Oraon and Kartik Oraon to rise to fame. In fact, this was why Rahul, during his meeting with Bhagat and other senior state leaders on March 21, had suggested programmes to win back this tribal community. Bhagat, too, came to limelight in 2003, banking on the Sarna issue. Still a civil servant, he had taken on RSS leader Ashok Varshney when he had referred to the Sarnas as Vanvashis. Bhagat had objected saying the RRS was trying to “kill the distinct identity of the Sarnas”. Eventually, he joined the Congress in 2005 and won the Lohardaga seat in the Assembly elections. Though he lost the constituency in 2009, his stature and popularity in the party had constantly grown, said party insiders.