Hemant Soren, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) executive president, took oath as the 13th Chief Minister of Jharkhand on Thursday evening after Governor CP Radhakrishnan invited him to form the government. Soren, the former Chief Minister, was recently released on bail in a land scam case after spending around five months in jail.
The JMM chief staked claim to form the government on Wednesday after Champai Soren, who had taken oath as the 12th Chief Minister of Jharkhand on February 2 after Hemant Soren's arrest, resigned.
Hemant Soren, son of JMM supremo Shibu Soren, was released from jail on June 28 after the Jharkhand High Court granted him bail in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. On Wednesday, the JMM-led alliance in the state unanimously elected him as the legislature party leader.
Hemant Soren had resigned as the Chief Minister shortly before his arrest on January 31 by the Enforcement Directorate.
Meanwhile, official sources in New Delhi said the Enforcement Directorate is soon expected to approach the Supreme Court with a plea challenging the Jharkhand High Court order that granted bail to Hemant Soren.
In its June 28 order, the single bench of Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay of the High Court stated that the court's belief that the petitioner (Soren) is "not guilty" was erroneous and that the accused does not satisfy the twin conditions as required under section 45 of the PMLA.
While Jharkhand can have 12 ministers, the state Cabinet currently has a strength of 10.
The strength of the JMM-led alliance in the state was reduced to 45 MLAs – JMM-27, Congress-17, and RJD-1, after the Lok Sabha elections. Two JMM MLAs, Nalin Soren and Joba Majhi, were elected to the Lok Sabha, while another MLA, Jama legislator Sita Soren, resigned to contest the general elections on a BJP ticket. Soren's party expelled two more legislators – Bishunpur MLA Chamra Linda and Boriyo MLA Lobin Hembrom.
Similarly, the Opposition BJP's strength has also reduced to 24, as two of its MLAs, Dhulu Mahto (Baghmara) and Manish Jaiswal (Hazaribag), are now MPs. The saffron party expelled Mandu MLA Jaiprakash Bhai Patel after he joined the Congress to contest the polls.
