On 16 Feb 2024, the newly made Champai Soren government in Jharkhand saw the formation of new cabinet ministers. It came with a controversy that Latehar’s MLA Badiyanath Ram whose name was supposed to be present in the cabinet minister list was removed at the last moment.
Kashif Raza, Azad Samaj Party Jharkhand, State President stated that “Insult to Badiyanath Ram was an insult to dalit community in Jharkhand”. According to Kashif, Latehar’s Honorable MLA Vaidyanath Ram, who comes from a Dalit community, his name was included in the cabinet expansion. His name was also included in the list of new ministers sent to Raj Bhavan. But his name was removed at the last moment, he was not administered the oath of office as a minister, what is the reason for this?
He further states that Indian democracy advocates equal participation and rights of all classes in proportion to their numbers. Ignoring the Dalit community in the new government of Jharkhand may prove costly for the strong JMM government. Champai Soren should consider this.
Letter to the chief minister, Champai Soren
Kashif Raza has written a letter to the current chief minister of Jharkhand, Champai Soren regarding the matter and requested him to take corrective actions.