A DAY after eight MLAs were sworn in as Cabinet Ministers in Jharkhand, discontent is brewing in the Congress camp of the ruling alliance. At least eight Congress legislators have raised objections to four party MLAs chosen as ministers and are demanding new faces in the Cabinet. Sources said they left for New Delhi on Saturday night to take up the matter with the party leadership. Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee president Rajesh Thakur, who had multiple rounds of discussions with the party MLAs, told The Sunday Express that he too is in the national capital and the talks will happen in his presence. “I am in New Delhi to convey their demands to the top leaders. They still want to come here and talk. We will sit together and resolve the issue.” The Jharkhand ruling alliance with 47 MLAs — 29 from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), 17 from the Congress, one from Rashtriya Janata Dal in the 81-member Assembly — weathered a political storm recently following the arrest of former CM Hemant Soren on January 31. After 26 hours of uncertainty, Governor C P Radhakrishnan invited JMM's Champai Soren to form the government. As per sources, the eight MLAs who are flying to Delhi are: Irfan Ansari, Bhushan Bada, Kumar Jaimangal, Rajesh Kacchap, Amba Prasad, Dipika Pandey, Sonaram Sinku and Umashankar Akela. Jamtara MLA Irfan Ansari said, “We had told the state leadership that we don't want the same old ministers. We had demanded that the incumbents (from the Congress) need to be removed since their performance is not that great and the top leadership has no information about it.” Ansari said they were informed that since the JMM is not adding any new ministers, the Congress too won’t make any changes. “But this was not the case. JMM added two new ministers. We were very angry and told the PCC about it…We are pained by the disrespect shown to us; we will not participate in the budget session of the Assembly if our demand for removing four Congress ministers are not fulfilled.” Sources in the Congress, however, said removing the four ministers in an election year may cause a backlash. Assembly polls in Jharkhand are scheduled to be held this year-end. A source said: “If the four Congress ministers are removed and new faces are added, it will cause too many problems in an election year and nothing much will change on the ground as far as public perception is concerned. We may face a double whammy. Therefore, it is not in the interest of the party to take any action two months before the general elections.” Congress Bermo legislator Kumar Jaimangal, alias Anup Singh, told the PTI that 12 party MLAs want the removal of the four ministers. "We are travelling to Delhi. Rest (remaining four) will reach tomorrow. We will hold discussions with Congress leadership there. We want replacement of all the four. the 12 MLAs are together, barring the four ministers and MLA Pradeep Yadav,” he said. On Saturday night, Cabinet Minister Basant Soren, younger brother of ex-CM Hemant Soren, met the dissenting Congress MLAs and held a detailed discussion. Jaimangal said: “He has assured us that all MLAs will be respected.”
