When Election Commission of India (ECI) chief Rajiv Kumar announced the election dates for Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana on August 16, opposition leaders and the INDI bloc launched a central attack on the BJP government in the country.

Shiv Sena UBT leader and MP Sanjay Raut said the BJP had postponed the state assembly elections because it was afraid of the opposition and wanted to remove the Jharkhand Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chairman from his post.

“The elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand are being postponed because they (BJP) want to remove Hemant Soren from the post of chief minister, break his party and bring instability in Jharkhand. The elections are being postponed because they need time for that,” Raut said.

Sanjay Raut on the political crisis in Jharkhand

#REGARD | Mumbai, Maharashtra: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut says, “The elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand are being postponed because they (BJP) want to remove Hemant Soren from the post of chief minister, crush his party and create instability in Jharkhand. The elections are being postponed because they … pic.twitter.com/HamT3egTjW

— ANI (@ANI) 19 August 2024

Sanjay Raut’s statement came amid the political crisis in the state of Jharkhand, where the JMM-Congress government is currently in the spotlight following speculations about Champai Sore’s resignation from his regional party. Champai on Sunday said he had been “insulted” during his tenure, adding that “all options are open” to him until the upcoming Jharkhand Legislative Assembly elections.

Also read | Assembly elections 2024: Sanjay Raut criticizes central government for postponing election date for Maharashtra.

During the press conference, UBT leader Raut said that the BJP was afraid of losing the elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand and was buying votes through the ‘Ladla Bhai’ scheme. He alleged that the poll panel was working against the Constitution and was under pressure from the central government.

“You saw what Champai Soren said after the meeting yesterday. The same is true for Maharashtra. They are afraid of losing in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. In Maharashtra they will go under… They want to buy votes through the ‘Ladla Bhai’ scheme… The Election Commission is working against the Constitution and is under pressure,” he added.

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