Thursday, March 10 2005 18:04 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Ranchi: Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren today (Mar 10, 2005) claimed that he would win the trust vote in the Assembly tomorrow reiterating that his United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Ministry had the support of 42 legislators in the 81-member House.

"I have said earlier that I have the support of 42 MLAs and I say again today that I have 42 legislators supporting me," Soren said, after a UPA meeting.

He claimed that among the 42 were independents Enos Ekka, Madhu Kora and Hari Harain Rai, who were among the 41 National Democratic Alliance (NDA) legislators that returned from Rajasthan during the day for taking oath in the Assembly.

When told that all the three legislators were seen in the NDA camp, Soren replied, "You have yourselves seen that Ekka, Kora and Rai were forcibly driven away in a bus after they took the oath. However, I am confident of winning the trust vote tomorrow."

Asked why the two Forward Bloc MLAs, Aparna Sengupta and Bhanupratap Sahi supporting his Government had not turned up in the Assembly for swearing-in, the Chief Minister said that the two had been busy attending a meeting.

Questioned that Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Kamlesh Singh, who was supporting him, too had not turned up to take the oath, the Chief Minister said that the MLA had gone to attend a Puja.

Asked whether he knew about the notice being served by Pro-tem Speaker Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu on Enos Ekka, asking why he should not be disqualified for going against his party directive, Soren replied that he was unaware of it.

To a question whether he would move the Supreme Court against its directive preponing the trial of strength by four days, the Chief Minister said, "If necessary we will do so. We did not get the time earlier."