The State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday sought clarification from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) on allegation leveled by Chakradharpur MLA, Shashibhushan Samad that JMM sold the party ticket.

Samad won the seat on JMM ticket in 2014, but this time the party has denied ticket to Samad and fielded Sukhram Oraon from the seat. After that Samad joined Babulal Marandi-led Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) and is contesting election from the seat on JVM ticket.      

Commenting on the issue, BJP State Spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo said, “Samad said that JMM had sold the seat of Chaibasa to Geeta Koda for Rs 6 crore. And this time the seat of Samad was also sold by the top leadership of JMM for Rs 50 lakh.”

“Earlier, the State Acting president of Congress, Irfan Ansari, also said that former State Congress president, Ajoy Kumar had sold all the seats in the last Lok Sabha elections,” said Shahdeo.

The party Spokesperson further said that the statements have made it clear that candidates’ qualification is not a parameter to judge is eligibility in the Opposition parties’ alliance. They distribute party tickets only on auction, he added.

“The top leadership of the JMM did a sand scam on the ground, a mining scam beneath the ground and sold its vote in parliament to save former Prime Minister, Narasimha Rao’s Congress Government in the Centre. Now the party has crossed the entire limit when it is selling party tickets for money,” said Shahdeo.

Daring JMM top leadership, Shahdeo said that if Samad is leveling false allegation then JMM should come forward and file a case against Samad for maligning the party’s reputation. He said that the allegations made by Samad confirmed the fact that the BJP has been describing since the beginning that the JMM as a party of trading.

A video clip also displayed by the State BJP unit in which Samad was saying that JMM has sold the party ticket from the seat in Rs 50 Lakh.