By IANS
Ranchi : The result of the by-election in Jharkhand's Daltonganj assembly constituency has sharpened the schism between allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal-United (JD-U).
The seat Tuesday went to BJP-backed independent Inder Singh Namdhari, former speaker and a JD-U leader until March this year when he quit the party. While Namdhari won the election, the JD-U's Neelu Mishra lagged way behind at number 13 by getting just 1,135 votes.
The troubles had started with the Palamau Lok Sabha by-election in March when Namdhari wanted only the BJP candidate to be promoted by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). But JD-U went ahead and fielded its own candidate, leading to Namdhari's resignation from the party and the assembly.
By the time the JD-U withdrew from the race, it was too late and the party played no role in the BJP's campaign.
The tensions have only exacerbated since, with Namdhari's victory coming as the latest blow.
A JD-U leader admitted that the gap is widening, but said, "We don't want remain as the BJP's younger brother. We are fighting for political survival and the BJP should given us more space in state politics."
"The JD-U should have understood the stature of Namdhari and should have worked for his re-entry into the party," said former chief minister and BJP leader Arjun Munda.
State BJP president P.N. Singh was more conciliatory.
"There is a gap in the JD-U and BJP, but we will work to bridge it. We are alliance partners both at the national and state levels and should understand each other's importance in the given political scenario."