Jharkhand: Hemant Soren Govt Decides To Withdraw Pathalgadi Movement Cases In First Cabinet Meeting

The newly elected Hemant Soren government in Jharkhand has decided to take back all cases registered during the Pathalgadi movement in Khunti last year. It will also withdraw cases filed against those protesting changes in the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act (CNT) & Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act, 1949.

These decisions were made in the first cabinet meeting of the new government on Sunday. In the meeting, it was decided that the first meeting of the new Vidhan Sabha will take place from January 6 to January 8. Stephen Marandi will be the pro-tem speaker who will deliver oath to newly elected MLAs.

It also decided to implement the other big ticket electoral promises of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led coalition. The cabinet decided to set up a new fast track court soon. It also decided to fill all vacancies in the Jharkhand government in six months. It also decided to give unemployment allowance to jobless young people and release pending scholarship to students.

Hemant Soren took the reins of the state as chief minister on Sunday, a week after a three-party coalition, led by him, swept the assembly polls, bagging 47 seats in the 81-member Assembly. This will be Soren's second stint as the chief minister of the tribal state. Governor Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Soren at Ranchi's Morabadi Ground while Congress leaders Alamgir Alam , Rameshwar Oraon and RJD legislator Satyanand Bhokta took oath as ministers.

In the just-conducted Assembly elections, the JMM-Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) alliance triumphed over the BJP, winning 47 seats in the 81-member House. Four other MLAs - three from the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) and one from the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) have also extended support to the three-party coalition.