Hemant Soren meets Rahul and Kharge in New Delhi, discuses Jharkhand election

Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren meets Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi ahead of Assembly elections.

In the run-up to the Assembly election in Jharkhand, Chief Minister Hemant Soren along with his MLA wife Kalpana Murmu Soren on Tuesday met Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi.

Mr. Gandhi termed it a courtesy meeting, however, sources in Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) said that discussions on the Assembly polls also took place, which is due later this year in November-December.

The meeting comes days after former Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after resigning from the JMM alleging that he was humiliated and insulted by JMM. He had also cited dissatisfaction with the party’s current style of functioning.

Mr. Soren met Mr. Kharge and Mr. Gandhi at the Congress president’s residence where Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal was also present during the meeting.

“Courtesy meeting with Jharkhand Chief Minister Shri Hemant Soren and Mrs. Kalpana Soren in the presence of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge. INDIA is united for the upliftment and rights of the people of Jharkhand, the poor and the tribals. We will win this election with a massive majority,” Mr. Gandhi said in a Facebook post.

After the meeting, Mr. Kharge also asserted that the INDIA bloc will win in Jharkhand. “INDIA will win in Jharkhand, today, along with Mr. Rahul Gandhi had a courtesy meeting with the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Mr. Hemant Soren. We are fully committed to social justice and economic upliftment of all sections of the society in Jharkhand,” Mr. Kharge said in the message posted on social media platform X.

Mr. Soren later inaugurated the newly-constructed Jharkhand Bhawan located in central Delhi.