Jammu, September 4
The electoral alliance between the BJP and the RSS-backed Jammu State Morcha (JSM) is on the rocks with a senior leader of the JSM, Mr Tilak Raj Sharma, filing his nomination for the prestigious Assembly seat of Jammu (East) which had been given to the BJP under the poll pact between the two parties.
The JSM was not satisfied with the nine seats, including the Jammu (West), allotted to it under the pact.
In a hurried reaction to the allocation of Jammu (East) to the BJP, leaders of the JSM said that there was no room for compromise on the issue as the morcha had already announced Mr Sharma as its candidate.
A sitting BJP MLA, Mr Hans Raj Dogra, has been denied ticket from Jammu (West).
The seat adjustment was done last night in Delhi at a meeting in which the BJP president, Mr Venkaiah Naidu, general secretary, Mr Raj Nath Singh, and the RSS leaders, Mr Madan Dass Devi and Mr Ram Prakash, were present. Mr Indiresh, who looks after RSS activities in J&K and Himachal Pradesh, had also gone to Delhi to plead the case of the JSM.
The JSM has already announced its candidates for 12 seats and is demanding at least 18 of the 37 Assembly seats in the Jammu region. However, following yesterday’s meeting JSM has been allotted only nine seats. These include the Jammu (West), Jammu cantonment, Bishnah, Nagrota, Ranbir Singh Pura, Chhamb, Billawar, Reasi and Kishtwar.
The JSM, which is demanding statehood for the Jammu region, is seeking a majority of the seats here as this is the epicenter of its demand. However, the BJP denied ticket for the Jammu (West) seat to Mr Chander Mohan Sharma, who is being backed by the Union Minister of State for Defence Production, Mr Chaman Lal Gupta, and offered it to the JSM. Mr Sharma has been asked to contest from Akhnoor.
This has created rumblings within the BJP. Some BJP leaders had three days ago demanded that there should be no pact with the JSM and the party should contest all 37 seats of Jammu by itself.
The JSM has fielded Dr Virender Gupta from the Jammu (West) seat. The BJP has not been able to find any suitable candidate for the Jammu cantonment seat following the recent desertion of Mr Piara Singh, a sitting MLA, to the National Conference.
