Former Jharkhand chief minister and JMM six-term MLA Champai Soren on Tuesday announced that he and his youngest son Babulal Soren would join the BJP on August 30.

“When I came to Delhi on August 18, I had made my position clear (of leaving the JMM). Initially, I thought of retiring from active politics or forming a new political outfit. But had to rethink due to lack of time. Then my confidence in the leadership of our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and Union home minister (Amit Shah) increased and I decided to join the BJP along with my son after consulting my well-wishers,” Champai told the reporters at Delhi airport on Tuesday morning.

He also hinted at retiring from the Hemant Soren cabinet later this week.

The move, however, has stirred mixed emotions within the ruling coalition of JMM-Congress-RJD and the Opposition BJP, just months before the state’s Assembly polls.

A senior BJP leader in Jamshedpur said: “Champai Soren is certainly a prominent tribal leader, at least in the Kolhan region. However, his son Babulal Soren has had a reputation of being hot-headed, which might increase internal wrangling among party leaders and cadres at the ground level, especially in East Singhbhum rural areas, where people have been agitating against Babulal Soren for several years,” said the BJP leader.

A BJP leader in Ranchi said that the party had seen the effect of “para-trooping” tribal leaders from other parties before elections during the recent Lok Sabha polls.

“We had witnessed two tribal leaders — former Singhbhum MP Geeta Koda and sitting MLA Sita Soren (eldest daughter-in-law of JMM patriarch Shibu Soren) — joining the party months ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and both lost the polls. We have to understand the acceptability of the tribal leaders by tribal leaders within the saffron party who have nurtured hope in the Assembly polls. We already have two strong tribal leaders in the form of former Union minister Arjun Munda and state president Babulal Marandi,” said the leader.

Ranchi-based JMM leader and party spokesperson Manoj Pandey kept his fingers crossed on the impact of Champai Soren leaving the party ahead of the polls.

“It pains but now the situation is clear. He will be joining another party. What impact it will have, only time will tell. History has proven that those who have left the JMM and joined some other party have not been given that respect,” said Pandey.