BOKARO: Former minister Umakant Rajak resigned from all posts of the AJSU-P (All Jharkhand Student Union) party, just four days before nominations begin for the upcoming Jharkhand assembly elections.
His resignation sent shockwaves through the NDA alliance, adding further intrigue to the electoral contest in the Chandankyari assembly. This also marked the end of the long-standing dispute over seat-sharing between BJP and AJSU.
For the past few days, rumours swirled about Umakant Rajak's possible switch to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). These rumours gained momentum after a fake list of JMM candidates circulated on social media, listing Rajak as the JMM candidate for Chandankyari.
The political buzz intensified to the point that on Wednesday night, over 50 local JMM leaders from Bokaro district met with chief minister Hemant Soren in Ranchi, led by district president Hiralal Manjhi.
On Friday morning, Umakant Rajak officially announced his resignation from the AJSU party, sending the letter to its Supremo Sudesh Mahto, and moved with his hundreds of supporters to join JMM in Ranchi. When pressed for details, Rajak cryptically remarked, "Let the time come, and everything will be clear." He also urged his Chandankyari supporters to ramp up preparations for the elections, with the nomination process set to begin on November 22 and end on November 29.
Speculation is rife that now there will be a clear contest between BJP Leader of Opposition Amar Bauri and Rajak as JMM’s candidate. Having started his political career with JMM, Rajak later joined AJSU and won the Chandankyari seat in 2009. However, he lost to the BJP in 2014. In the 2019 elections, BJP’s Amar Kumar Bauri secured 67,739 votes, while Rajak garnered 58,528 votes, and Rajwar received 36,400 votes.
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