BJP trying to destroy democracy in Jharkhand, alleges Congress

On Saturday, the police intercepted three Congress MLAs--- Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachhap and Naman Bixal --- with huge amounts of cash in West Bengal. The incident resulted in Congress leaders attacking the saffron party for attempting “Operation Lotus” in a state run by the opposition

The Congress on Sunday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party is carrying out another “Operation Lotus” – this time in Jharkhand in an attempt to topple its coalition government led by chief minister Hemant Soren of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).

Jharkhand Congress president Rajesh Thakur with party MLA Anoop Singh lodging an FIR against his party’s suspended MLAs Dr. Irfan Ansari, Naman Vixal Kongadi and Rajesh Kachhap accusing them of conspiracy to topple the state government at Ranchi Argora police station in Ranchi on Sunday. (ANI PHOTO.)

“When BJP cannot win a state by electoral means, they spend money in the state, misuse central agencies and attempt to tear down democracy. We’ve seen examples of this in Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Goa, Maharashtra and now they are attempting it in Jharkhand,” party spokesperson Pawan Khera said.

On Saturday, the police intercepted three Congress MLAs--- Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachhap and Naman Bixal --- with huge amounts of cash in West Bengal. The incident resulted in Congress leaders attacking the saffron party for attempting “Operation Lotus” in a state run by the opposition.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Jharkhand Avinash Pande alleged, “For the past two years, they (BJP) have been attempting to weaken the chosen government by luring MPs with money.” He added that a senior BJP leader and chief minister has been threatening MLAs.

Refuting these allegations, Union minister for tribal affairs Arjun Munda said that the Congress party is making up these allegations to hide their corrupt practices in the state, reported ANI. He added, “Congress party has a habit of levelling baseless allegations against others to hide their own mistakes beneath the carpet… they (Congress MLAs) must explain where all the cash recovered from the car came from. They have to reveal what they were doing in Bengal with a huge amount of cash.”

The Jharkhand Congress has been a divided house, with a section of legislators, including the three detained in West Bengal, who have been critical of the four Congress ministers in the Hemant Soren cabinet. Also, Jharkhand is rife with speculation of a possible political realignment in the state. The Congress is the second lead partner in the JMM-Congress-RJD combine government led by Soren, who, along with his close aides, is surrounded by allegations of corruption.