She quit the JMM hours before joining the BJP, claiming that she was being “neglected and isolated” in Jharkhand’s ruling party.
Sita Soren joined the BJP in the presence of its national general secretary Vinod Tawde and Jharkhand poll in-charge Laxmikant Bajpai.
Showering praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she promised her support to the BJP to “save Jharkhand”.
“I had to take this decision today and the way we saw from PM Modi touring the entire India, India’s name is becoming popular in foreign countries also, so considering this, I have trust and faith in JP Nadda ji, Amit Shah ji, Devendra Fernand ji, I will get support from them and we have to save Jharkhand.”
Who is Sita Soren?
Sita Soren alias Sita Murmu is Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader Hemant Soren‘s sister-in-law. She is the widow of his elder brother Durga Soren.
Sita was first elected as the MLA from Jama in 2009. Soon after, she was appointed as JMM‘s National General Secretary.
She won the Jharkhand Legislative Elections from Jama for two more terms in 2014 and 2019.
The three-time MLA from Jama and party supremo Shibu Soren’s daughter-in-law has been accused of receiving money from RK Agarwal in the 2012 Rajya Sabha elections. Over ₹2 crore were seized from her residence on the day of the 2012 elections. Sita even served seven months in jail over corruption charges and is out on bail now.
On March 4, the Supreme Court overturned the 1998 JMM bribery case judgement, which protected her father-in-law from prosecution, following a petition by Sita Soren.
She contended before the apex court that the constitutional provision granting lawmakers immunity from prosecution and the 1998 verdict, which saw her father-in-law being let off the hook in the JMM bribery scandal, be applied to her.
She had moved the apex court against the Jharkhand High Court order of February 17, 2014, refusing to quash the criminal case lodged against her.
Recently, after Hemant Soren was arrested, speculations were rife that his wife Kalpana Soren would take over as Jharkhand’s Chief Minister. The idea was openly opposed by Sita, saying “I will strongly protest any move to make her CM.”
“I would like to ask why only Kalpana Soren, who is not even an MLA and has no political experience… under what circumstances is her name being touted as the next chief minister when there are so many senior leaders in the party,” she had questioned.
“There are several senior leaders who could be given the reins of the party. If they want to elect from the family, I am the senior-most in the House and have been an MLA for around 14 years,” she added.
Why did she leave Jharkhand Mukti Morcha?
In her resignation letter to the Jharkhand Assembly speaker, Sita Soren said that it was a matter of morality for her. She has also claimed that she was not being given her “due respect”.
” Many circumstances arose in the party; in the end, it was a matter of morality for me,” the resignation letter read.
“I have become aware of a conspiracy being orchestrated against me and my family… I am left with no choice but to tender my resignation,” she added.
Citing a lack of respect in the 14 years she had spent with the JMM, Sita said: “I served the party for 14 years, but to date, I have not received the respect that I should have received in those 14 years, due to which I had to take this very big decision for respect of hard work made by my late husband Durgashwar ji…we have remained untouched till date, we have not received any respect from any kind of party.”
However, JMM Leader Manoj Pandey refuted her claims of lack of respect and said the party considered her as an important member.
“It is very unfortunate. We hope she retracts. The kind of respect she has received from this party, I don’t think she will get anywhere else…if she comes under the influence of those people who oppose us, then she is sabotaging herself,” Pandey said.
(With agency inputs)
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Published: 19 Mar 2024, 05:29 PM IST