Taking disciplinary action against rebel leaders, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief Shibu Soren on Friday suspended two party MLAs for six years each.
Mr. Soren suspended Borio MLA Lobin Hembrom and his daughter-in-law Sita Soren, MLA from the Jama Assembly seat. The action was taken after Mr. Hembrom made a formal announcement to contest the Lok Sabha polls as an independent candidate against the party candidate from Rajmahal seat, whereas Ms. Sita Soren, who had quit the JMM and joined the BJP, is contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Dumka seat against JMM candidate Nalin Soren.
The JMM has fielded Vijay Hansda as its candidate in the Rajmahal seat reserved for Scheduled Tribe whereas the BJP has fielded Tala Marandi as its candidate. Rajmahal will vote in the seventh phase on June 1.
Ms. Soren was holding the post of Central General Secretary in the party,
Mr. Hembrom is a habitual offender who keeps on embarrassing his party. In the past too he has spoken against the then Chief Minister Hemant Soren, alleging that nothing was done for the tribals in the State.
Similarly, when Kalpana Soren’s name was making the rounds in the political corridor, the elder daughter-in-law and party MLA Ms. Sita Soren had raised objections, saying she would not accept Ms. Kalpana Murmu Soren as Chief Minister. To cool down the anger in the family, Champai Soren was made the Chief Minister and all speculation ended after it.
To maintain discipline, the JMM has so far taken action against five leaders who have been vocal against the functioning of the party. Out of five, three are MLAs and two are former MLAs.
The party has shown the door to JMM Bishunpur MLA Chamra Linda, who contested against grand alliance Congress candidate Sukhdev Bhagat from the Lohardaga Lok Sabha seat. Former MLA J.P. Verma, who is contesting as an independent candidate in the Koderma Lok Sabha seat, has also been suspended, apart from former MLA Basant Longa, who contested Lok Sabha polls as an independent in Khunti.
