Ranchi:
Jharkhand Governor Syed Ahmad is likely to recommend a President's rule in the state with neither the Congress nor the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) having the numbers to form the next government on their own, according to sources. Leaders of both parties met Mr Ahmad yesterday separately.
Sources say the Governor though is unlikely to recommend dissolution of the house in his report to the President and may prefer keeping the house in suspend animation as the Congress and JMM have asked for more time to form an alliance. The BJP with 18 seats, the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha with 11 along with the All Jharkhand Students Union that has six seats and the Janata Dal (United) with two seats want dissolution of the house. The JMM, the Congress, along with the Rashtriya Janata Dal that has five seats say the house shouldn't be dissolved.
The JMM, which pulled out of its 28-month coalition government with the BJP last week, may be looking to the Congress for support, but has got no assurance so far. The JMM has 18 seats while the Congress has 13 seats in the 81-member Jharkhand assembly.
The JMM leaders had yesterday requested the Governor to give the party a chance to form the next government. "We told the Governor there is scope to form a new government in Jharkhand and asked for some time to prove our majority," JMM leader Hemant Soren had said.
After meeting the Governor, Rajendra Singh, leader of the Congress Legislature Party, said: "We are against President's Rule. We feel the Assembly should not be dissolved. The JMM has staked claim and should be given a chance to form the next government. The decision to back them will be taken by the Congress leadership in Delhi."
Top JMM leaders, led by Mr Soren, had been in Delhi on January 9 to meet Congress leaders and try and form together an alliance.
The JMM would prefer a tie-up with the Congress to keep Babulal Marandi's Jharkhand Vikas Morcha away, say sources. It reportedly wants the chief minister's post for Hemant Soren. But the Congress may be wary of the JMM's poor record in keeping coalitions working.
Jharkhand has seen eight governments in the last 12 years.