Jailed former CM Hemant Soren''s wife Kalpana takes oath as member of J''khand Assembly

Ranchi, Jun 10 (PTI) Kalpana Soren, wife of jailed former chief minister Hemant Soren, was sworn in as a member of Jharkhand Assembly from Gandey constituency on Monday.

Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahto administered the oath, with Chief Minister Champai Soren and other JMM leaders in attendance.

Expressing gratitude to the people of Gandey, Kalpana remarked, "Only three to four months are left for the Assembly elections in the state, but I will work for the people of Jharkhand. Hemant Ji may not be present here physically, but the way people extended love to him was reflected in Lok Sabha and Assembly bypoll results. Now, we have the upcoming Assembly elections and the alliance partners will focus on it." During the last three Lok Sabha elections in Jharkhand, the BJP had been dominant, but it faced a significant setback in the recent polls, particularly in the state's five tribal constituencies - Khunti, Singhbhum, Lohardaga, Rajmahal, and Dumka.

The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led alliance emerged victorious in all five seats, performing notably well in Singhbhum, Rajmahal, and Dumka.

Kalpana secured victory in the bypoll, defeating BJP's Dilip Kumar Verma by a margin of 27,149 votes. The seat fell vacant following the resignation of JMM MLA Sarfaraz Ahmad. In the polling held on May 20, over 2.17 lakh out of the 3.16 lakh eligible voters exercised their franchise.

She began her political journey during the 51st Foundation Day celebration of the JMM in Giridih district on March 4, asserting that a conspiracy had been orchestrated by opponents ever since the Hemant Soren coalition government came to power in 2019.

Hemant Soren was arrested by the ED on January 31 in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged land fraud and resigned from his post before the arrest.

Kalpana, a prominent figure in INDIA bloc rallies in Jharkhand, completed her education in Odisha's Mayurbhanj district and obtained her engineering and MBA degrees in Bhubaneswar.

Speculation arose following Hemant Soren's arrest that Kalpana would assume leadership. However, a family rift emerged, with his sister-in-law, Sita Soren, openly opposing any move to make Kalpana the chief minister.

In response, Kalpana declared, "I have fought, and I will continue to fight! We have won, and we will win!" The BJP has been criticising Kalpana, alleging that Champai Soren is a "caretaker and puppet chief minister" while she holds the "centre of power" in Jharkhand. PTI NAM MNB