The BJP on Wednesday replaced Narayan Bhokta as its Latehar candidate after the banned left-wing extremist organisation Tritiya Sammelan Prastuti Committee (TSPC) informed the party of his links with it. Former MP Braj Mohan Ram will now contest from the seat. He filed his papers on Wednesday, the last date for submission. Sources in the TSPC told this newspaper that Narayan Bhokta was once the deputy zonal commander of Latehar. He was removed from the party after allegations of mismanagement relating to collection of levy cropped up. A spokesperson for the BJP said that Bhokta was replaced after the party came to know of certain criminal cases against him. "He has an outstanding warrant against him. We talked to our lawyers and found out that he could be arrested soon. He had hidden the details of his case in his application for candidature," said Pradeep Sinha of the BJP. TSPC sources say the BJP was unaware of Bhokta's past till one of its leaders reached out to the party. Apparently, the TSPC is unhappy that Ganesh Ganjhu, the elder brother of its supremo Brajesh Ganjhu, was denied a ticket. Ganesh Ganjhu denied that he had informed the BJP. "Someone must have shown the chargesheet against Bhokta to the party. After all, we all know he has cases against him. I, on the other hand, have no case against my name," he said. Ganjhu, who defected from the JMM and joined the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, recently left the party. "I was promised the Simaria assembly seat ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. I was taken to Delhi. I even came first in the internal elections of the party. Then, they gave it to someone else," he said. He resigned and has since joined Babulal Marandi's JVM(P). Mamta Devi, the wife of TSPC's Zonal Commander Laxman Ganjhu and Chatra's zila parishad president, is also a member of the JVM(P).
