Gadkari calls Munda to Delhi over bypoll debacle

Ranchi, Jul 6: Two days after BJP lost the crucial Jamshedpur Lok Sabha bypoll, party president Nitin Gadkari called Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda to Delhi to discuss the debacle today (Jul 6).

BJP state unit president Dineshanand Goswami, also the party candidate for the bypoll, would accompany Munda to meet Gadkari, a senior party leader said here.

Goswami lost to Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantric-JVM-P) candidate Ajay Kumar by a margin of over 1.5 lakh votes with only 52 percent votes cast in the bypoll.

The JVM-P was floated by former chief minister Babulal Marandi after he quit the BJP over four years ago. Goswami has since sent his resignation from the party post to Gadkari.

Recently senior BJP leaders like Dinesh Sarangi, Chandresh Oraon and Sanjay Seth had quit the BJP for what they alleged being sidelined by Munda.

Before the bypoll, the state BJP had entrusted Munda to convince ruling coalition partners, JMM and Ajsu party, to support the BJP candidate. But he failed and all the three ruling alliance partners fought one another in the bypoll.

However, all the three allies said the result would not affect the coalition government as theirs was not a pre-poll alliance.

PTI