Ranchi: In a significant setback for the Congress in Jharkhand, Geeta Kora, the party's lone MP from the state and wife of former CM Madhu Kora, defected to the BJP on Monday. This move leaves the Congress-Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) alliance with only one MP, Vijay Hansdak, as the BJP had secured 12 out of 14 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Madhu Kora, facing allegations in the coal block allocation case and convicted in a disproportionate assets case, also joined the BJP.
Geeta Kora's entry into the BJP is seen as a potential boost for the party in the Kolhan division, covering East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum, and Saraikela-Kharsawan districts, where the BJP had faced difficulties in the 2019 Assembly elections. State BJP chief Babulal Marandi suggested that the Congress mistreated Madhu Kora after he became the CM in 2006 with Congress support.
Madhu Kora's tenure as CM ended in 2008 when the JMM, a UPA constituent, withdrew its support, leading to the fall of the government. The Congress was accused of orchestrating this political change, and later, Madhu Kora became the UPA in-charge for Jharkhand.
Geeta Kora, who entered politics in 2009 and won Assembly elections as a candidate of Jai Bharat Samanta Party, merged into the Congress in 2018. Her sudden switch to the BJP has left Congress leaders in shock, with many expressing unawareness of her dissatisfaction with the party.
Geeta Kora, known for her active parliamentary involvement, had raised concerns about the 'Sarna Religious Code' in the Census in December 2021, questioning the Modi government's stance on Adivasis' rights.
In a separate development, just before the Assembly polls, four sitting MLAs, two from the Congress and two from the National People's Party (NPP), joined the ruling BJP in Arunachal Pradesh. Opposition Congress legislators Ninong Ering and Wangling Lowangdong, along with NPP lawmakers Mutchu Mithi and Gokar Basar, joined the BJP in the presence of Chief Minister Pema Khandu. This move strengthens the BJP's position in the state, reducing Congress's representation in the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh Assembly to two members, with the BJP holding 56 seats along with allies. The elections for the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly are likely to coincide with the Lok Sabha polls in April or May.
