Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and senior Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader Champai Soren left for Ranchi on Tuesday. Soren, who had been in the national capital since Sunday amid speculation about a potential switch to the BJP, firmly denied any such intentions.
Before his departure, Soren addressed the rumours, stating, “I had said earlier that I have come here for personal work and there was no meeting scheduled with BJP leaders. I have never tried to break MLAs from my party and I have great respect for our leader Shibu Soren.”
Despite Soren’s denial, reports suggest that a meeting with a BJP leader occurred on Monday night.
However, the BJP is still deliberating over Champai Soren’s potential inclusion, and a final decision is yet to be made, per sources cited by the Economic Times. The BJP’s central leadership is currently assessing the prospects of Soren joining the party and its impact on the upcoming elections in the state. The party may soon invite several state leaders to Delhi for further discussions.
Meanwhile, party officials in the JMM believe that Soren’s open letter criticising the party leadership signals his departure from the party. There is a buzz that he is going to float his own party soon.
“It is a new chapter of my life. I won’t quit politics as I have received lots of love and support from my followers. The chapter has closed, I may form a new outfit,” Champai Soren said shortly after reaching his ancestral village Jhilingora in Seraikela-Kharsawan district on Tuesday.
“I’ll strengthen the new organisation and if I find a good friend in the way, I’ll move ahead with that friendship to serve the people and state… Everything will become clear in a week,” he added, per NDTV.
Recently, Soren expressed dissatisfaction with his treatment during his tenure as the Jharkhand CM. Soren took office in February following the arrest of Hemant Soren by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case.
Champai Soren’s brief term as the 12th Chief Minister of Jharkhand ended in July, allowing Hemant Soren to return to his role.
Soren spoke about the “bitter humiliation” he faced and how his authority was undermined, with decisions being made without his consultation, including the cancellation of important government programs and meetings. He recounted being unexpectedly asked to resign during a legislative party meeting on July 3. Although caught off guard, Soren complied immediately, but described the experience as extremely humiliating.
In a social media post, Soren traced his long political journey from his activism for workers’ rights and involvement in the Jharkhand movement. Yet, recent developments have caused him to question his future with the JMM, a party he has dedicated decades to.
“No one from JMM contacted me. This is the land of Jharkhand…I have struggled since my student life. I participated in the agitation for a separate Jharkhand state under the leadership of party supremo Shibu Soren,” Champai Soren said.
Soren alleged that he was barred from convening legislative party meetings and that even routine government functions.
On his political future, Soren outlined three possibilities: retiring from politics, forming his own party, or aligning with a new political ally.
“I had three options. First to retire from politics, second to float a separate outfit, and third, if I find any ally, to carry forward with them. From that day till today, and till the upcoming Jharkhand Assembly elections, all options are open for me in this journey,” he said in a post on X.
The Jharkhand Assembly elections are scheduled for later this year. In the 2019 elections, the JMM, in alliance with Congress and Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), secured a comfortable majority with 47 seats in the 81-member house.
