‘Rat-like’ RSS infiltrating Jharkhand, goal is to stoke communal tensions: Hemant Soren

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Wednesday, September 25, launched a scathing attack on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), comparing the organisation to "rats" and accusing both the RSS and the BJP of disrupting communal harmony in the state for political advantage.

Speaking at a rally in Bhognadih, Sahibganj, Hemant Soren alleged that the BJP was deliberately stoking communal tensions, pointing specifically to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's role in the matter. 

The rally was held virtually, with Hemant Soren addressing the crowd from Ranchi. “RSS is infiltrating the state like rats, destroying it from within. Whenever you see such forces entering your villages with 'handia' and 'daru' (local liquor), drive them away. Their goal is to incite communal disturbances before elections for their own political gains,” Soren said.

He warned of an increase in provocative incidents aimed at inflaming religious tensions, including the desecration of temples and mosques by throwing meat into them.

Hemant Soren also attacked the BJP, labeling it a party of "traders and industrialists" that buys political leaders to further its agenda. The comment was an apparent reference to former Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren, who recently joined the BJP, claiming he had been "disrespected and humiliated" by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).

Dismissing BJP's claims of demographic shifts in Jharkhand, the Jharkhand chief minister suggested that those raising such concerns should examine the population data of neighboring West Bengal instead.

In a pointed remark, he questioned Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s involvement in Jharkhand’s affairs, noting that tribal communities in Assam continue to face serious atrocities under Sarma's administration.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader Arjun Munda has claimed that the people of Jharkhand were feeling “betrayed” by the Hemant Soren-led government and have made up their minds to oust the "inefficient" dispensation.

“The ongoing Parivartan Yatra of the BJP is aimed at highlighting the present dispensation's failure to deliver on all fronts. The state government talks about the interests of the tribals, who are, however, not feeling safe under the JMM-led regime. The damage caused to the tribals would be visible in the days to come,” he alleged, without elaborating.

(With agency inputs)