Election stir in Jharkhand

Four communal flare-ups have been reported in Jharkhand over the past fortnight, with several political observers believing that the BJP stands to gain from such incidents and fearing more trouble as the state gears up for Assembly and Lok Sabha polls next year.

The political observers and social activists said that though there had been sporadic incidents of communal tension during Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanti in the past, they could not recall such frequent flare-ups in the state.

They said this could be a ploy to foment communal polarisation ahead of the 2024 general election and Assembly polls to gain electoral advantage. At least one BJP leader has been arrested in connection with the flare-ups. The BJP has denied any role in the communal discord.

Senior journalist and political editor of a Hindi vernacular, Sudhir Pal, saw a design to gain political mileage from such incidents.

“Not only social activists and political observers, but even the Jharkhand director-general of police has said in an interview to a Hindi daily that though the police have succeeded in curbing Maoist activities to a large extent, the growing communal incidents is a matter of concern for the security forces. It shows the extent to which the administration is worried. We should be prepared to see more such incidents in the run-up to the elections as certain parties stand to benefit from such situations,” Pal said without naming any political party.

Jharkhand DGP Ajay Kumar Singh told The Telegraph that even small incidents were being given communal and political colour by “certain forces”.

“We would be seeing many such incidents as we inch towards election year, which is certainly a matter of concern for the administration. Every small issue is given political and communal overtones,” Singh said.

Political columnist Faisal Anurag pointed fingers at the BJP.

“There is no denying that the BJP stands to gain immensely from communal polarisation. They… want to keep the situation tense as it suits their political interest going towards the elections,” Anurag said.

Bharat Bhusan Choudhary, who is associated with the PUCL and the Samajvadi Jan Parishad and has been raising human rights issues on various platforms, said the BJP, supported by its frontal organisations, often incited flare-ups.

“They are in a very advantageous situation when there is communal tension, as opposed to when core issues like inflation and other economic situations are raised. This is the specific reason they want to harp on such issues for electoral gains,” Choudhary said.

A BJP leader, Abhay Singh, was among 60 people arrested in connection with violence over the alleged desecration of a religious flag in the Shastrinagar area of Jamshedpur in East Singhbhum district on Saturday. A day later, members of two communities allegedly hurled stones at each other and burnt vehicles.

Internet services had to be suspended for a couple of days. Prohibitory orders under CrPC Section 144 remain clamped in the area where the clashes took place.

On April 3, an idol was allegedly vandalised in Sahibganj district, triggering tension.

Vandalism had been reported last week at a religious place in Hazaribagh district during Ram Navami.

In the Haldipokhar area of East Singhbhum district, stones were allegedly hurled at a Ram Navami procession, leading to a clash and the burning of vehicles.

BJP Rajya Sabha MP and state president Deepak Prakash refuted the allegation that the party was fomenting communal flare-ups.

“It is an absolutely false allegation levelled by persons associated with the ruling alliance (JMM-Congress-RJD) government to hide their own failure in controlling law and order during religious festivals. People are aware of this and will teach them a lesson in 2024,” Prakash said.