After quitting as Odisha Governor, Raghubar Das returns to BJP

Former Jharkhand CM Raghubar Das rejoins BJP, aims to strengthen non-tribal and OBC vote banks, possibly replacing state president.

Raghubar Das who recently resigned as the Governor of Odisha returned to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday. The former Jharkhand Chief Minister became a member of the BJP again in the presence of state BJP president Babulal Marandi by giving a missed call to a phone number designated by the party for membership.

Party workers and supporters gave him a grand welcome at the party office and raised the slogan of “We will come back”.

Mr. Das is an OBC leader who became the first non-tribal Chief Minister of Jharkhand in 2014. His return to the BJP might throw a challenge to the supremacy of Mr. Marandi, who was the first Chief Minister of Jharkhand and as party chief, he failed to win desired number of seats in the last Assembly election.

Addressing the press at the party office in Ranchi, Mr. Das said, “I am very happy that once again I have returned to my party. Let me say this that I do not have any desire for anything in the party. I have only one motive, to awaken people and to protect the rich culture and tradition of Jharkhand.”

He added, “Be it the issue of infiltration, [or] religious conversion, both are dangerous for the state. When there was a double engine government in Jharkhand, it became the first state where PLFI (People’s Liberation Front of India) was banned. In today’s scenario, PLFI has once again become active in the Santhal region. I will urge the ruling party to stop [encouraging] these activities for the sake of vote bank politics.”

After the humiliating defeat in the last Assembly polls, the BJP, in its internal survey, found that non-tribal voters, who constitute 74% of the State’s population in comparison with 26% tribal voters, were not given adequate attention. The BJP is of the opinion that his active participation in Jharkhand politics will strengthen the party’s non-tribal vote bank along with OBC vote bank.

Party insiders said that Mr. Das is likely to replace Mr. Marandi and the latter would be made the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly to maintain a balance between non-tribal and tribal leadership.