Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren denied talk of his wife Kalpana Soren running for the Gandey assembly constituency in the state on Tuesday, calling it a "complete imagination" of the BJP. Soren told PTI that the speculations are completely false. "Possibility of my wife contesting in near future is a complete imagination of the BJP... Speculations about handing over reins to her is a fabric woven by the BJP to build a false narrative," he said.
The recent summons to the chief minister by the Enforcement Directorate, along with the surprise resignation of the governing JMM's Gandey MLA Sarfaraz Ahmad on Monday, sparked the suspicion.
The opposition BJP claims Ahmad was forced to resign so that the chief minister's wife, Kalpana Soren, could run for the Gandey seat if the ED summonses were issued.
The 81-member Jharkhand Assembly will be elected later this year.
On recent political developments in the state, Jharkhand Governor CP Radhakrishnan says, "Nothing has come to my knowledge, everything is on the paper only, let's see."
The ruling JMM-led coalition met with its MPs here on Wednesday to examine the state's current political position.
"A meeting of the legislators of alliance partners has been convened at 4.30 pm at the chief minister's residence on January 3. Please ensure timely participation in the meeting," Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) general secretary Vinod Kumar Pandey's letter to ministers of the alliance parties and legislators was quoted by PTI in its report.
According to JMM sources, the conference has been called to address the current political situation in light of the ED's summoning of Soren, as well as to plan a strategy, PTI reported.
Gandey legislator Sarfaraz Ahmad's abrupt departure, without explanation, has fueled speculation that Mr Soren may stand down and appoint his wife Kalpana Soren as chief minister, with her running for the empty seat.