Jharkhand Assembly polls | From Barhait to Ranchi, here are eight battleground seats

Jharkhand recorded 67.74% turnout in 2024 Assembly polls, with polling held peacefully in both phases

Story so far: The Opposition-ruled Jharkhand went to polls in two phases to elect members to its 81-seat Assembly on November 13 and 20. Led by incumbent Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the INDIA bloc mounted a defensive campaign against the BJP which had wooed several top Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leaders to its folds. Results will be announced on November 23.

The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) comprising of JMM, Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) took on the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) comprising of BJP, All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas). The election campaign was divisive as BJP accused the JMM-led coalition of thinking about “power and money”, appeasing Muslims and unleashing hooliganism.

Faced with several desertions and Central agencies’ scrutiny of its top leadership, JMM and Congress accused BJP of hoodwinking voters, communalism and vowed to never let Uniform Civil Code and National registry of citizens be implemented in Jharkhand. The 43 seats which went to polls on November 13 saw a voter turnout of 64.86% with Kharsawan seeing maximum polling of 77.32% followed by Baharagora — 76.15 % and Lohardaga — 73.21%. Ranchi witnessed the lowest polling with just 51.5%. In phase 2, polling was completed peacefully in the remaining 38 seats with a final voter turnout of 67.59%, with Maheshpur recording the highest (79.4%) and Bokaro saw the lowest tally (50.52%). 

Eight seats where key battles were fought between political dynasts, turncoats and veteran politicians are – Barhait, Seraikella, Jamtara, Jagannathpur, Jamshedpur East, Gandey, Dumka and Ranchi. 

Jharkhand’s key fights

Barhait 

Seeking a third term from Barhait, the embattled Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren faced AJSU’s Gamliyel Hembrom who contested on a BJP ticket. This seat which has been held by JMM since 1990 was favoured by Mr. Soren over Dumka, which is his family bastion. Mr. Soren had resigned from Dumka in 2019 after winning Barhait.

Seraikella 

Rebel JMM leader and former CM Champai Soren seeks a fifth consecutive term from Seraikella. Since switching to BJP, Mr. Soren has faced the ire of his JMM peers after he accused Hemant Soren of ‘insultingly removing him from the CM post’. He faced Mr. Ganesh Mahali, who himself switched from BJP to JMM in these polls. Mr. Soren and Mr. Mahali have clashed previously in 2014 and 2019 and now faced each other for a third time, albiet with switched loyalties. 

Jamtara 

Estranged Soren daughter-in-law Ms. Sita (Murmu) Soren tried her electoral luck on a BJP ticket by shifting from her current seat Jama, which she has held since 2009. Falling out with the Soren family over chief minister’s chair after Hemant Soren resigned from the post, Sita Soren, the wife of JMM chief Shibu Soren’s late son Durga Soren switched to BJP. She faced a stiff contest in Jamtara from incumbent Congress MLA Irfan Ansari who has held the seat since 2014. 

Jagannathpur 

Ex-CM Madhu Koda’s wife and former MP Geetha Koda seeks a third (non-consecutive_ term from Jagnnathpur. Ms. Koda, who had jumped ship from the Congress to the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, lost to JMM’s Joba Majhi. Trying her luck in her old family bastion, Ms. Koda’s main challenger was Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha’s (JLKM) Lakshmi Narayan Laguri. 

Jamshedpur East

A saffron bastion held by BJP since 1990s, Jamshedpur East saw Congress’ Ajoy Kumar – a former Superintendent of police (SP) face Purnima Das Sahu, daughter-in-law of fomer CM Raghubar Das. While Mr. Kumar’s popularity aided his ground support, the ex-CM’s clout in the region is significant. Mr. Das, who is currently the Odisha governor, held the seat between 1995 and 2014, making it an uphill battle for the Congress candidate. 

Gandey 

Falling under the Giridih region, Hemant Soren’s wife Kalpana Soren is defending her Gandey seat after winning it in the by-polls held in May this year. In the wake of her husband’s arrest, Ms. Soren was most likely to succeed him as CM before JMM chose Champai Soren as its pick. Ms. Soren’s re-election is challenged by BJP’s Muniya Devi, a grassroots party worker who has palpable support. However, JMM has won Gandey in six out of 11 elections held since 1977. 

Dumka 

Held by JMM since 1980, Dumka saw an electoral fight between Basant Soren – youngest son of Shibu Soren – and JLKM’s Subha Das Kora. The younger Soren made his electoral debut in the 2020 by-elections and defeated BJP veteran Lois Marandi by a margin of 6,842 votes. Ms. Marandi, who has now switched to JMM, was fielded from Jama which was vacated by Sita Soren who switched to BJP. 

Ranchi 

Another saffron bastion which witnessed a tough fight was Ranchi which saw six-time MLA CP Singh take on JMM’s Mahua Maji. While Ms. Maji was trumped by Mr. Singh in both 2014 and 2019, she scripted history by becoming the first female to be elected to Rajya Sabha from Jharkhand. 

Published - November 22, 2024 06:36 pm IST