Hemant Soren, in ED custody, arrives at Jharkhand Assembly for new govt's floor test

Ex-Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren/ File Photo

Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday reached the state Assembly here to participate in the floor test of his successor Champai Soren-led government to prove their majority.

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) executive president, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in an alleged land scam, has been granted permission to attend the floor test in the Assembly.

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Hemant, who represents the Barhait Assembly constituency in Sahibganj district, was brought by ED to the state Assembly.

The two-day special Jharkhand Assembly session begins today. The newly formed Champai Soren-led coalition government is scheduled to seek a trust vote.

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha has 29 seats, its ally Congress has 17 and the RJD and the CPI (ML) have 1 seat in the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly. With the support of 43 MLAs, the INDIA bloc has the numbers to sail through the floor test.

The legislators in the ruling alliance, who were camping at a private resort in Hyderabad after the swearing-in, also arrived at the state Assembly for the floor test.

Earlier in the day, JMM General Secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya expressed confidence in winning the floor test by Champai Soren-led government and claimed that his party will get a minimum of 47 MLAs' support.

"The floor test will be done. We have, not less than 47," said JMM General Secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya said flashing a victory sign.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also appeared confident of the alliance securing a majority on the floor of the house. Ramesh and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi are in Jharkhand as part of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

"On 28th January, Nitish Kumar resigns as CM of Bihar. On 28th January, Nitish Kumar is sworn in as CM of Bihar and given time till Feb 12 to prove his alliance's majority on the floor of the Assembly. On 31st January, Hemant Soren resigns as CM of Jharkhand. On 2nd February, Champai Soren is sworn in as CM of Jharkhand and given time till Feb 5th to prove his alliance's majority on the floor of the Jharkhand Assembly. The G-2, the PM and HM are thinking that 'horse-trading' will be quicker in Jharkhand than in Bihar. They are in for a big shock. The INDIA group will easily win the vote of confidence today in Jharkhand and the BJP's attempts at breaking RJD and INC in Bihar will also fail miserably" Jairam Ramesh said.