By Nityanand Shukla
Ranchi, June 2 (IANS) The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which credits itself as being the primary force behind the creation of a separate Jharkhand state and fights for the 'Jal, Jungle and Zameen', is seemingly no different from the country's other political parties, where family comes first.
The fact was very much evident as instead of nominating any other Jharkhand Adivasi or Moolvasi, the party chose Basant Soren, the youngest son of party chief Shibu Soren, also known as Dishom Guru, for the Rajya Sabha polls later this month.
He is also the younger brother of Hemant Soren, a former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly.
Hemant is second of the three sons of Shibu Soren, better known as Guruji, who served as the Union Coal Minister in the UPA-I government and had also thrice been the Jharkhand Chief Minister.
His elder son, Durga Soren, who died a few years ago, was also an MLA. Currently his widow and the elder daughter-in-law of the family, Sita Soren, is the MLA from the Jama constituency in the Santhal Pargana region.
Rupi Soren, Guruji's wife and Hemant Soren's mother, too had tried her luck in the polls with the party fielding her from its traditional bastion of the Santhal Pargana region, the Dumka Lok Sabha constituency.
Hemant Soren has represented the Dumka assembly constituency and is currently the MLA from Barhet. He had contested the polls from Dumka and Barhet, was defeated in Dumka by Louis Marandi of the BJP but managed to trounce Hemlal Murmu, a former JMM man from Barhet, to ensure his entry into the fourth Jharkhand assembly.
Basant Soren is currently the president of the Jharkhand Yuva Morcha and to make sure that his political career makes a right move, the family has decided to send him to the Rajya Sabha.
However, the JMM move has been criticised, with Chief Minister Raghubar Das stating that after the state was formed, a particular family has remained in power one way or the other.
He alleged that JMM leaders are claiming that because of this, dedicated workers were being denied their due in the organisation.
He has urged the MLAs to rise over family and dynasty politics and cast their vote for the process of nation building.
The JMM's plan to field Basant was also criticised by the JVM-P, with party MLA Pradeep Yadav stating that the family should have opted for a candidate belonging to the minority community.
(Nityanand Shukla can be contacted at nityanand.s@ians.in)
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