Democracy has become private fiefdom: BJP leader

BJP leader Raghuvar Das, who was the Deputy Chief Minister during the erstwhile Shibu Soren-led government, today accused the JMM of making democracy as its private fiefdom.
"JMM has made 'gana tantra as parivar tantra (roughly translated; turning democracy into private fiefdom)'," alleged Das, who was a deputy CM when JMM supremo Shibu Soren got the power for the third time on December 30, 2009.
Das was commenting on Chief Minister Hemant Soren following the footsteps of his father and JMM supremo Shibu Soren, who had three shots at the coveted post.
"Self-centred politics, opportunism and greed for power have taken centrestage in Jharkhand," the senior BJP leader alleged further.

Das, however, did not repent when asked whether he rued aligning with the JMM twice in the same house - once giving the mantle to the JMM and then BJP taking over under Arjun Munda's leadership.
"It's an age of coalition. And we allied with JMM following a fractured mandate. Though our ideologies differed, we had formed the two governments with the JMM on a common motto- serving the people and development the state.

"But opportunism and greed for power have overwhelmed Jharkhand," argued Das.
The JMM and the BJP had swapped power on earlier two occasions, but it did not materialise for the third time that led to the JMM withdrawing support to the Arjun Munda-led government on January 8 this year.

After six months of President's rule, JMM joined hands with the Congress and the RJD to form the third government in the same house and the 9th overall in less than 13 years.