All is not well with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, the major constituent of the ruling combine in Jharkhand.

The party is worried about the activities of two of its MLAs — Borio MLA Lobin Hembrom and Jama MLA Sita Soren (who is also a daughter-in-law of JMM supremo Shibu Soren) — and has engaged another to issue them a veiled warning.

Though both have been critical of the state government for quite some time, their recent activities apparently prompted the party to direct a senior party leader and Maheshpur MLA Stephen Marandi to issue them a warning while explaining his own to the media.

“Lobinji recently held meeting within my constituency saying he had approval from Guruji (as the senior Soren is addressed by his party members and followers) where he criticised the government and some of those who attended the meeting even burnt effigies of both the chief minister and me,” Marandi alleged at a press meet at their party’s headquarters in Ranchi on Saturday, adding Hembrom, instigated by the BJP, was indulging in anti-party activities.

Despite the JMM supremo never allowing him to hold any such meeting, Lobin did so and displayed photos of the senior Soren, Marandi further alleged.

“Sitaji instead should have spoken to her devar (CM Hemant Soren),” Marandi further said, referring to Sita Soren meeting Jharkhand governor Ramesh Bais the previous day and seeking his interventions in what she described as loot of jal-jungal-zameen (natural resources) of the state.

“It’s up to Guruji to take appropriate steps but I feel disciplinary actions should be initiated against both of them for their anti-party activities,” Marandi said at the press meet, adding the BJP was trying to destabilise the state government by encouraging such elements.

Both the BJP state president Deepak Prakash and senior MLA Babulal Marandi, however, dismissed the allegation, saying it was an internal matter of the JMM and they had nothing to do with it.

Both Sita Soren and Lobin Hembrom also clarified their respective stand and denied their involvement with the BJP. “I had been alerting the state government against the continuous loot of jal-jungal-zameen in the state for quite sometime but no effective action was taken so far and that prompted me to seek intervention of the governor,” Sita said after coming out from Raj Bhavan in Ranchi on Friday, adding the governor assured her to get the matter investigated.

Some forest officials connived with a local coal company for making a road through forest land in Chatra district, she alleged while giving an example and added no action was ever taken on erring officials. “This is not the real Jharkhand for which Guruji and Durgaji (her late husband and Shibu’s eldest son who died young) had fought for,” Sita alleged, indicating their party, the JMM, had shifted from its vowed stand.

She, however, promptly added that there was no rift within the party and she was just demanding that irregularities be set right.

Lobin Hembrom also explained his stand, saying he was making people aware about importance of adopting the 1932 khatian (land records) to decide who would be considered as local residents of the state.

He also alleged that the administration did not allow him to hold a rally in Sagebganj on Sunday, citing Covid curbs.

The political observers, however, feel these two MLAs, despite their proximity with the top leadership of the party, did such things because they felt as being sidelined within the party.

They also feel that the party leadership also wanted to issue them a veiled warning through the press meet addressed by Stephen Marandi.

Their claim got credence as senior Soren called Marandi half way through the press conference when Marandi said that he was informing the media that Lobin’s meeting had no approval from the party supremo.