Suspense over on Champai Soren: Ex-Jharkhand CM to join BJP on August 30, says Himanta Biswa Sarma

Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) Jharkhand election co-in-charge, on Monday announced that senior Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader and former CM Champai Soren will join the saffron party on August 30. 

Sarma also shared a picture of Champai Soren meeting Amit Shah. "Former Chief Minister of Jharkhand and a distinguished Adivasi leader of our country, Champai Soren ji met Hon'ble Union Home Minister Amit Shah ji a short while ago. He will officially join the BJP on 30th August in Ranchi," the Assam CM wrote in a post on X.

Sarma's recent post comes days after Soren arrived in Delhi with some MLAs on August 18. Later, the senior JMM leader said that he felt 'pained' by his own people when his programs were cancelled 3 days before he was asked to resign as the Chief Minister.

There, however, was suspense over his next move as Soren said that he had 3 options before him -- retiring from politics, floating a new political outfit or joining another 'companion.'

Days later, he said that he won't retire from politics, which left him with 2 options. "I will either strengthen a new organisation or find support in another friend on the way," Soren said on August 21. 

Sarma's announcement also comes as a surprise as Champai Soren previously rejected media reports of him joining the BJP.

Referring to these reports as 'rumours', Soren said: "I don't know what rumours are being spread. I don't know what news is being run, so I cannot tell whether it's true or not. I don't know anything about it... Hum jahan par hain wahin par hain (I am here only)."

Champai Soren became the Chief Minister of Jharkhand after the Enforcement Directorate arrested Hemant Soren in an alleged land scam case on January 31. He, however, stepped down as the CM on July 3 after Hemant Soren was granted bail by the Jharkhand High Court. 

Soren, also known as 'Jharkhand Tiger', had concerns that he would be replaced as the CM months before the Assembly elections in the state. Days after he stepped down as the Jharkhand CM, Champai Soren said that he would have done more to develop the state had he gotten some more time.