JMM-Congress alliance ahead in race for Jharkhand - 10 Points

Manglore Today News Network

Ranchi, Dec 23, 2019:   The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Congress alliance is ahead in the race for Jharkhand with the ruling BJP (45 seats to the BJP’s 25) during the counting of votes of the assembly election on Monday.

The 81-seat house has a majority mark of 41. For the BJP, the results will be crucial. The party lost Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to Congress last year. This year, after its huge victory in the Lok Sabha election, Maharashtra slipped out of its grasp as it fell out with ally Shiv Sena over power sharing. Elections were conducted for Jharkhand in five phases from November 30 to December 20. In the Lok Sabha elections held earlier this year, BJP had won 11 of 14 seats in the state.

Here are the top ten updates on Jharkhand assembly election results 2019:

1. As the alliance established early lead over the BJP, JMM’s Hemant Soren, the face of the alliance and its Chief Ministerial candidate, visited his father Shibu Soren to seek his blessings. A two-time Chief Minister, Shibu Soren was one of the key figures in the statehood movement.  

2. Chief Minister Raghubar Das said the BJP could not be written off as there were several rounds of counting still to go. "Those who are celebrating can do what they feel. No one can stop someone from celebrating," Mr Das said.

3. BJP national spokesperson Vijay Sonkar Shastri told NDTV, "The results in Jharkhand are not on expected lines as the BJP had set a target of winning more than 65 seats". He said it appeared that the party failed to convince people on its development agenda.

4. Earlier, Mr Sonkar said the BJP has always "stood by the smaller parties". The comment is seen as a hint of the Plan B for the party, which lost ally AJSU (All Jharkhand Students’ Union) ahead of the election as its chief, Sudesh Mahato, snapped ties. Sources said the BJP has already dialled the former ally as well as smaller parties like Jharkhand Vikas Morcha, headed by Babulal Marandi.

5. Mr Marandi, who might emerge as a kingmaker in case of a hung house, said, "After the results, we will decide. We will sit with our members and then decide what to do".

6. The most prominent candidates in the election are Chief Minister Raghubar Das, his predecessor Hemant Soren - the chief ministerial candidate of the opposition alliance -- All Jharkhand Students Union president Sudesh Mahto and the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha’s Babulal Marandi. Raghubar Das is leading in Jamshedpur East.

7. Raghubar Das, who contested from Jamshedpur East, is trailing ex-cabinet colleague and party rebel Saryu Rai, who fought as an independent.

8. The opposite coalition has projected Hemant Soren as its chief ministerial face. The son of three-time chief minister Shibu Soren, he had earlier served in the position between 2013 and 2014.This time, he contested from two seats -- Dumka and Barhet. BJP pitted state minister Louis Marandi in Dumka against Mr Soren.

9. In the 2014 state elections, the BJP had won 37 seats while the All Jharkhand Students’ Union won five. The Congress was reduced to just six seats.

10. The elections took place in Jharkhand five phases from November 30 to December 20.

Courtesy:NDTV