Ranchi/Giridih: Wednesday, has been a great day for Bharatiya Janata Party in Jharkhand, as not only five legislators, former Director General of Police and retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) joined the saffron brigade but a former health minister along with his party decided to merge with the ruling party.

The move of MLAs hailing from different opposition parties joining BJP just ahead of the Assembly Polls has great political significance. The ones who joined BJP from other parties, include two MLAs each from Jharkhand Mukhti Morcha (JMM) and Congress party. Jai Prakash Patel, JMM’s Mandu MLA had openly supported BJP during the Lok Sabha polls along with Kunal Sarangi, jumped the fence.

While Congress party’s former Jharkhand president and MLA Sukhdev Bhagat along with Barhi MLA Manoj Yadav also chose to become leaders of the ruling party.

Significantly, when school’s children were waiting for the CM sporting BJP’s symbols, along the roadside in Giridih, official programmer mentioned that Raghubar Das was in Ranchi itself, at party office, around that time.

According to sources, all the sitting MLAs who have joined BJP will be getting tickets to contest election from their favourite constituencies.

However, this development in Ranchi has become curse for school children, 220 kilometers away from the the state capital, in Giridih. Due to these political developments, Chief Minister Raghubar Das who has supposed to do a roadshow in Giridih had to reschedule his programme, by almost three hours and chose to attend the party function to welcome new members.

Meanwhile in Giridih, district administration’s officials, who had brought students to welcome the CM, had no option but to make them wait. If this was not enough, party cadres went ahead and made them wear BJP’s caps, scarves and handed them party flags. The students were also not given anything to eat till chief minister’s convoy did not cross by.

The children were made to stand along the roadside from 10 am, while chief minister’s programme rescheduled by over two hours(10.35 am landing at Boro Airstrip, Giridih was rescheduled to 12.10 pm).

Significantly, when school’s children were waiting for the CM wearing BJP’s symbols, at roadside in Giridih, official program mentioned it that Raghubar Das was in Ranchi itself, at party office.

“Raghubar government does not do anything good for the children. That is why they have made them stand with party symbols. State government has crossed all the limits. They have also lost the culture of this state,” reacted Jharkhand Vikash Morcha leader Chunnu Kant, after the event. got over.

While, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)’s district president Sanjay Singh claimed, “Sponsored by BJP, Jan Ashirwad Yatra is a political programme and we witnessed a shocking spectacle on the roads of Giridih during the event, where students were used fora political tool. It is highly condemnable. It violates child rights and we demand action, else party will be forced to protest.”