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    Former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM quits Grand Alliance in Bihar ahead of polls

    Synopsis

    The decision was taken after a meeting of HAM leadership in Patna. HAM was launched in 2015 and was part of the NDA in the assembly elections that year. The party won one seat out of 20 it contested. In 2019, the part was part of the UPA and could not win a single Lok Sabha seat.

    Bihar: Jitan Ram Manjhi-led HAM-S exits Grand Alliance ahead of assembly polls
    NEW DELHI: Hindustan Awam Morcha (HAM) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi decided to quit the opposition alliance after months of speculation following souring of relations with RJD, setting the stage for joining the ruling coalition.

    “After months of getting ignored, today we have decided to quit the grand alliance. We have authorised our party president Jitan Manjhi ji to take a call on future course of action,” HAM spokesman Dhirendra Munna told ET on Thursday.

    The decision was taken after a meeting of HAM leadership in Patna. HAM was launched in 2015 and was part of the NDA in the assembly elections that year. The party won one seat out of 20 it contested. In 2019, the part was part of the UPA and could not win a single Lok Sabha seat.

    According to people aware of the matter, HAM will soon join the NDA in the presence of JDU leader and chief minister Nitish Kumar.

    Manjhi’s relations with the opposition alliance got strained just after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and he started reviving his rapport with Kumar. In June last year, the CM took everyone by surprise by attending an iftar party at Manjhi’s residence in Patna. This was the first such meeting between the two leaders and since then several rounds of discussion have taken place. Simultaneously, Manjhi kept on posturing in the opposition alliance and demanded formation of a coordination committee in October last year.

    On March 17, Manjhi went to meet the CM at his residence and his entry into NDA was finalised in that meeting, said the people. Manjhi was to announce his exit from UPA in a rally in May. But due to Covid-19 , he cancelled his rally. He kept on giving deadlines to UPA for the formation of a coordination panel and even went to Delhi to meet senior Congress leaders.

    “We would like to wish him all the best,” RJD’s Manoj Jha told ET. “He has chosen a different path. He will have to reconsider his views on social justice.”


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    ( Originally published on Aug 20, 2020 )
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