Hemant Soren wins trust vote

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren today won the trust vote in the assembly, six days after being sworn-in as the head of the JMM-Congress-RJD alliance.

The JMM alliance won 43 votes in the 82-member house while the Opposition got 37 votes.

"I gave a list of 43 MLAs support to Governor Syed Ahmed and now we have proved it," Soren, who was sworn in on July 13 after he staked claim, said on winning the confidence motion.

Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantric) MLA Nizamuddin Ansari was absent during the trust vote, according to party MLA Nirbhay Sahabadi.

Speaker C P Singh did not vote as there was no tie.

Congress MLA Sawna Lakra, who is undergoing life term in a murder case, voted for the JMM government after the Speaker left the decision on Lakra's conscience.

The Opposition had moved a petition that Larka should not be allowed in the voting process following the recent Supreme Court judgement that no person shall vote at any election if he is in prison or in police custody.

JMM MLAs Nalin Soren and Sita Soren, who were absconding, voted for the government.

Nalin Soren entered the house after securing a bail from the Supreme Court, while Sita Soren came to the house in the morning.

According to JMM sources, she had obtained bail from the apex court some time back in connection with an abduction case related to the 2012 Rajya Sabha horse trading case.

Both the MLAs were not sighted till yesterday and Jharkhand High Court had earlier pulled up the police for their failure in arresting them.