Dhanbad/Bokaro: In a series of disruptions leading up to the Jharkhand Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has encountered significant turmoil during its opinion poll meetings. These gatherings, meant to finalize candidate selections, were marked by chaos in the Dhanbad and Bokaro constituencies.
On Tuesday, the BJP district office in Dhanbad was the scene of a violent clash between supporters of BJP leader LB Singh and present MLA Raj Sinha. The altercation, involving shoving and pushing, reportedly stemmed from the presence of numerous outsiders at the meeting, who were allegedly attempting to influence the process and disrupt the proceedings. A BJP Bank More Mandal official accused these individuals of trying to sway workers by distributing money outside the office.
Meanwhile, in Bokaro, allegations of irregularities emerged as party workers accused the Mandal in-charge of manipulating the voting process. Disputes arose over the integrity of the voting method, leading to dissatisfaction among members. RN Ojha, a district Working Committee member and former MP representative, criticized MLA Biranchi Narayan for purportedly removing his name from the candidate list, calling it a breach of party rules and indicative of possible rigging.
At the opinion poll meeting held at Ambe Garden in Sector 2, Bokaro, district and working committee members from nine mandals participated in a secret ballot to rank their top three candidate choices. However, concerns about transparency were raised when some workers reported their names were removed from the voting list, exacerbating discontent.
Dr. Jeetu Charan Ram addressed the situation after the meeting, underscoring the importance of the opinion poll in the democratic process within the BJP. He assured that the candidate selection process, guided by worker opinions, is intended to be transparent and to boost morale.
Despite these assurances, RN Ojha has called for the matter to be escalated to the state unit of the party, demanding action against MLA Biranchi Narayan.
The incidents in Dhanbad and Bokaro underscore ongoing factionalism and dissatisfaction within the local BJP unit, raising concerns about potential complications in the electoral process.
