Will Hemant Soren take oath alone today? JMM says maybe, ally Congress says maybe not

“We are in the process of ironing things out. At the moment, one can assume Soren ji will be the only one to be sworn in. But other possibilities cannot be ruled out,” an insider in the Jharkhand Congress said.

However, AICC general secretary in-charge of Jharkhand, Ghulam Ahmad Mir appeared categorical that Thursday’s swearing-in would only feature Hemant Soren. “It has been decided that the expansion of the Cabinet will take place after the Vote-on-Account (on the floor of the House). It will not be the first time in Jharkhand that the Cabinet will be constituted after the procedural floor test. Our efforts are to accomplish everything in this regard in the shortest possible time,” he said on Wednesday evening after arriving in Ranchi to discuss government formation.

JMM sources said that the 12-member Jharkhand Cabinet would be filled broadly on the “one ministerial berth per every four legislators” formula, and would largely have two MLAs each from the five administrative regions – South Chotanagpur, North Chotanagpur, Kolhan, Palamu and Santhal Pargana – of the state.

Chief Minister Hemant Soren inspects preparations for the swearing-in ceremony, in Ranchi, Wednesday. (PTI)

The INDIA bloc stormed to a historic second consecutive term in Jharkhand with the JMM winning 34 of the state’s 81 seats while the Congress, RJD and CPI(ML)L won 16, four and two seats, respectively.

Sources said the JMM is likely to have six ministers while allies Congress and RJD will have four and one minister, respectively. “For the remaining vacant spot, the INDIA bloc is likely to consider elevating a woman MLA to the Cabinet or give it to the CPI(ML)L,” the source said.

Sources had earlier told The Indian Express that women may be given “a fair share” in the Cabinet berths given the role believed to have been played by the Maiyya Samman Yojana, which promises a monthly financial aid of Rs 1,000 to underprivileged women, in powering the alliance to power. Eight of the 12 elected woman MLAs (five from the Congress and three from the JMM) are from the INDIA bloc while four are from the BJP.

Meanwhile, another JMM source said that the party will decide its six names to ensure topographical and demographical balance after its allies finalise their names. “A decision will be taken on whether or not to fill the twelfth spot during these discussions.”

Soren, accompanied by wife and Gandey MLA Kalpana, paid tribute Wednesday to his grandfather Sobaran Soren near his ancestral village of Nemra. They later took stock of preparations for the swearing-in at Morabadi Ground in Ranchi.

A host of INDIA bloc leaders including Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, among others, are likely to attend Soren’s swearing-in.