Jharkhand Congress MLA, Post-ED Raids, Asserts Declining BJP’s Lok Sabha Ticket Offer

Congress MLA Amba Prasad, who faced a raid by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at her Jharkhand premises, asserted on Tuesday that the BJP had approached her with an offer to contest from Hazaribag in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Prasad, representing the Barkagaon constituency in Hazaribag district, disclosed that she turned down the BJP’s proposition.

Recounting the ED raid, Prasad shared her experience, stating, “They (ED) came early in the morning, and from there, it was just a whole day of torture. They made me stand in a place for hours. I was offered the Hazaribag Lok Sabha ticket from the BJP, which I ignored. Then I was pressurized.”

She added that representatives from the RSS side also urged her to contest from Chatra, but she dismissed that suggestion as well. Prasad emphasized her resilience, stating, “They see me as a very strong candidate in Hazaribag because we are continuously winning Barkagaon seats. We are from Congress, not from BJP. So easy target.”

Earlier on the same day, the ED conducted raids at Prasad’s Ranchi residence and properties linked to her in Hazaribag. The searches were part of investigations into alleged land and transfer-posting scams. Sources from the agency revealed that the raids, initiated in the morning, extended into the late night.

These actions were undertaken following a complaint of money laundering filed in 2023 against the Congress MLA at the Ranchi zonal office of the central enforcement agency.