JMM non-committal on Soren contesting bypoll

Ranchi: Though the BJP had reportedly given a week's time to the JMM to come up with a "concrete commitment" to carry forward their alliance in Jharkhand, the latter remained non-committal on Wednesday on whether Chief Minister Shibu Soren would contest a bypoll to enter the Assembly or would make way for a change of guard.

Soren's continuation as CM largely depends upon his contesting a bypoll before June 30. So far, no JMM MLA has resigned to vacate a seat for the JMM president, raising doubts whether he would at all contest a bypoll as he did in January 2009.

He had lost the Damad bypoll then, forcing him to quit as the Chief Minister.