'I have 3 options': Ex-Jharkhand CM Champai Soren pens emotional letter amid BJP switch speculations

Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader Champai Soren wrote an emotional letter recalling his brief time as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand. In the post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Soren detailed the “insult and contempt” he felt when he was asked to resign from his office after his predecessor Hemant Soren was released on bail.

Interestingly, the post came amid brewing reports that Champai Soren may quit JMM and join the BJP. The 67-year-old politician was appointed as the chief minister of Jharkhand after Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on January 31 in an alleged land scam case. Champai Soren eventually resigned from the post on July 3.

Recalling his time as the CM, Champai Soren said: “During this period, we took many decisions in the public interest and, as always, was always available for everyone. The people of the state will evaluate the decisions we took keeping in mind the elders, women, youth, students and every section of the society and every person of the state.”

He mentioned that things started to go downhill after Hul Diwas when his party leadership cancelled all his programmes for the next two days. He was also asked to attend a meeting of the MLAs and other INDIA bloc leaders.

“For the first time in my spotless political journey of the last four decades, I was broken from within. I could not understand what to do. For two days, I sat quietly and introspected, searching for my mistake in the whole incident. I did not have the greed for power even a bit, but to whom could I show this blow to my self-respect? Where could I express the pain inflicted by my own people?” he added.

Champai Soren says he has three options 

In the post, he mentioned that he had no clue what the agenda of the meeting was and was taken by surprise that when he was asked to resign. “Although the Chief Minister has the right to call a meeting of the MLAs, I was not even told the agenda of the meeting. During the meeting, I was asked to resign. I was surprised, but I had no greed for power, so I immediately resigned, but it was a blow to my self-respect,” he asserted.

The JMM leader called the behaviour “insulting” and emphasised that he felt he had “no existence” in the party. He went on to mention that after the whole ordeal, he had “three options in hand”. “First, to retire from politics, second, to form my own separate organization and third, if I find a companion on this path, then to travel further with him,” he wrote in the post.

Champai Soren concluded the post by saying that all three options are open for him until the Jharkhand Assembly polls.

In a separate post, the veteran politician made it clear that he has no intention to harm the JMM. “This is my personal struggle, so I have no intention of involving any party member in it or causing any harm to the organization. We can never even think of harming the party which we have nurtured with our blood and sweat. But circumstances have been created such that," he said.

On Sunday, Champai Soren left for Delhi amid speculations. After landing in Delhi he told local reporters that he hasn’t met any BJP leader and he is in the national capital on a “personal” visit.