Ranchi:
Three days after the Jharkhand polls threw up a hung assembly, political parties have intensified their efforts to form a government in the state.
Speculation is rife that the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which holds the key to government formation in the state, with 18 seats in the 81 seat assembly, may side with the BJP, in an effort to grab the chief minister's post for its chief Shibu Soren, something the Congress-JVM (P) alliance is not willing to offer him.
This new development, comes after the BJP changed its earlier stance of sitting in the opposition in the state. BJP leaders Ananth Kumar and Rajnath Singh are in Ranchi and will be meeting party legislators later in the day.
However, it is still unclear if the BJP will be part of the government or support Soren from the outside.
The first confirmation that the JMM and BJP are close to stitching together a government came after JMM leader Hemlal Murmu said: "The JMM is close to forming a government and the BJP may come forward to help." Even Soren's son Hemant Soren sounded confident but said the situation will be clear by Saturday.
"We are still talking but the situation will be 100 per cent clear by Saturday. Things will be final by tomorrow, we should manage to stake claim to form government on Saturday," said Hemant Soren.
Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said: "We are exploring all options available to form government in Jharkhand."
But despite public statements, BJP sources are more guarded, as they say the deal is not final yet. The party's Jharkhand unit was divided over going with Soren as senior party leaders like Yashwant Sinha and Arjun Munda - both aspirants for the CM's chair - were not keen.
More because the tie up will mean Soren becomes chief minister and there is nothing in the deal for them. Rajnath Singh and Anant Kumar are now being rushed to Ranchi.
In its rush to rule a state the BJP is forgetting its past.
In 2006 BJP leader Arun Jaitley had said: "This is up to the PM to explain why a tainted man (referring to Soren) was inducted. We are going to seek answers from the government and we will not rest here."
This was three years ago. Shibu Soren was in Manmohan Singh's cabinet. But now he has 18 MLAs. With his supports BJP can rule Jharkhand. Soren's taint is forgotten and in return the Jharkhand leader is ignoring the colour of BJP's politics.
"I have never said the BJP is communal and I will never say it. There is no point in defaming a party," said Shibu Soren, JMM president.
The Congress which had dropped Soren from the Cabinet - has retreated. Backing Madhu Koda's corrupt regime brought it discredit. Now it does not want to back another unstable government led by volatile Soren. That is why it has outsourced the task of garnering support to ally Babulal Marandi.
"We will welcome the MLAs who support us," said Babulal Marandi, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha president.
While Jharkhand waits for Soren to announce his next move - waiting on the sidelines are the 11 independents. With cabinet berths up for grabs they are waiting to say yes to any formation.
Speculation is rife that the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which holds the key to government formation in the state, with 18 seats in the 81 seat assembly, may side with the BJP, in an effort to grab the chief minister's post for its chief Shibu Soren, something the Congress-JVM (P) alliance is not willing to offer him.
This new development, comes after the BJP changed its earlier stance of sitting in the opposition in the state. BJP leaders Ananth Kumar and Rajnath Singh are in Ranchi and will be meeting party legislators later in the day.
However, it is still unclear if the BJP will be part of the government or support Soren from the outside.
The first confirmation that the JMM and BJP are close to stitching together a government came after JMM leader Hemlal Murmu said: "The JMM is close to forming a government and the BJP may come forward to help." Even Soren's son Hemant Soren sounded confident but said the situation will be clear by Saturday.
"We are still talking but the situation will be 100 per cent clear by Saturday. Things will be final by tomorrow, we should manage to stake claim to form government on Saturday," said Hemant Soren.
Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said: "We are exploring all options available to form government in Jharkhand."
But despite public statements, BJP sources are more guarded, as they say the deal is not final yet. The party's Jharkhand unit was divided over going with Soren as senior party leaders like Yashwant Sinha and Arjun Munda - both aspirants for the CM's chair - were not keen.
More because the tie up will mean Soren becomes chief minister and there is nothing in the deal for them. Rajnath Singh and Anant Kumar are now being rushed to Ranchi.
In its rush to rule a state the BJP is forgetting its past.
In 2006 BJP leader Arun Jaitley had said: "This is up to the PM to explain why a tainted man (referring to Soren) was inducted. We are going to seek answers from the government and we will not rest here."
This was three years ago. Shibu Soren was in Manmohan Singh's cabinet. But now he has 18 MLAs. With his supports BJP can rule Jharkhand. Soren's taint is forgotten and in return the Jharkhand leader is ignoring the colour of BJP's politics.
"I have never said the BJP is communal and I will never say it. There is no point in defaming a party," said Shibu Soren, JMM president.
The Congress which had dropped Soren from the Cabinet - has retreated. Backing Madhu Koda's corrupt regime brought it discredit. Now it does not want to back another unstable government led by volatile Soren. That is why it has outsourced the task of garnering support to ally Babulal Marandi.
"We will welcome the MLAs who support us," said Babulal Marandi, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha president.
While Jharkhand waits for Soren to announce his next move - waiting on the sidelines are the 11 independents. With cabinet berths up for grabs they are waiting to say yes to any formation.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
