The newly formed Champai Soren government in Jharkhand will seek trust vote in the state assembly on Monday with the JMM-Congress-RJD alliance exuding confidence in winning the number game.
Soren took over as the chief minister on Friday after his party leader Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case.
At least 40 MLAs of the ruling alliance, who were shifted to Hyderabad amid concerns over possible poaching attempts by the BJP, have reached back Ranchi ahead of the floor test.
In the 81-member house, the majority mark is 41. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha has 28 seats while its ally Congress has 16. The RJD and the CPI(ML) have one seat each.
On the other side, the BJP and its allies have 29 seats.
A video released by the JMM-led coalition on Thursday showed the support of 43 legislators in the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly.
As per an NDTV report, there is a buzz that two JMM MLAs may skip the voting which will bring down the majority mark.
"We have submitted the report (to the Governor) with 43 MLAs in our support. We expect the number will reach 46-47... so there is no problem. Our 'gathbandhan', or alliance, is very strong," Soren said.
The Congress also exuded confidence in winning the floor test while accusing the Centre of misusing the probe agencies against the INDIA bloc members.
"We have a majority in the 81-seat Assembly...Even Hemant Soren has been permitted by the special court (to cast his vote). This is a conspiracy by the ED. We will win the floor test. It has been clear from the start that the Modi government has been misusing the ED, CBI and Income Tax departments against the INDIA members. They are no longer independent institutions," Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said.
Jharkhend plunged into a political crisis after Hemant Soren was arrested by the ED following nearly seven-hour long interrogation in a land scam related money laundering case on Wednesday. A Ranchi court has sent him to five-day ED custody.
The court, however, has granted him permission to cast his vote during the floor test on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Jharkhand High Court will hear a petition filed by Hemant Soren against his arrest, on February 5.
