The great festival of democracy begins on November 13 in Jharkhand. The assembly elections will be held in the state in two phases. Voting will be held for 43 seats in the first phase on November 13 and for 38 seats in the second phase on November 20. The election results will be known on November 23 along with Maharashtra. The term of the current assembly in Jharkhand ends on January 5, 2025. Voting will begin at 7 am and continue till 5 pm. However, there are 950 booths where the voting time will be only until 4 pm.
In the first phase, 15,344 polling stations were created for 43 seats. 200 companies of central paramilitary forces have been deployed to ensure fair, transparent and peaceful voting. According to the Election Commission, a total of 683 candidates will be in the fray in the first phase of the Jharkhand Assembly elections. They also include 73 female candidates. Of the 43 assembly seats in the first phase, 17 are general seats, while 20 seats are reserved for scheduled tribes and 6 seats are reserved for scheduled castes.
Jharkhand Chief Electoral Officer Ravi Kumar said in a special conversation with Aaj Tak, “All preparations have been completed for polling of 43 seats in the first phase of Jharkhand Assembly elections on November 13. The groups Election polls have been sent by air to sensitive areas. Many unique and model booths have been deployed in the state, where all the facilities will be available for voters. They are being carried out continuously. public awareness campaigns to increase voting percentage. People are being appealed to exercise their right to vote. Arts and crafts of Jharkhand will also be glimpsed at exclusive stalls.
Voting for these 43 seats in the first phase
Koderma, Barkatha, Barhi, Barkagaon, Hazaribagh, Simaria, Chatra, Baharagora, Ghatshila, Potka, Jugsalai, Jamshedpur East, Jamshedpur West, Ichagarh, Seraikela, Chaibasa, Mazgaon, Jagannathpur, Manoharpur, Chakradharpur, Kharsanwa, Tamar, Torpa, Khunti, Ranchi, Hatia, Kanke, Mandar, Sisai, Gumla, Vishunpur, Simdega, Kolebira, Lohardaga, Manika, Latehar, Panki, Daltonganj, Vishrampur, Chhatarpur, Hussainabad, Garhwa, Bhavnathpur.
There is a contest between two big leaders for the Ranchi seat. Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s Rajya Sabha MP Mahua Majhi is contesting from Ranchi against six-time MLA and veteran BJP leader Chandeshwar Prasad Singh. Chief Minister Hemant Soren and his wife Kalpana Soren will cast their votes at the polling station set up at St. Francis School. Former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his wife Sakshi Dhoni will vote at the booth constructed at Jawahar Vidya Mandir School, Shyamali.
in seraikela Champai Soren vs. Ganesh Mahali
In Seraikela, BJP leader Champai Soren will take on JMM’s Ganesh Mahali. What is interesting is that Champai Soren left the JMM and joined the BJP just before the elections. Ganesh Mahali became angry with BJP after his ticket was rejected in Seraikela and joined JMM. In Jamshedpur East, Congress’s Dr Ajoy Kumar will take on BJP’s Purnima Das. Purnima is the daughter-in-law of Raghuvar Das, while Ajoy Kumar is a former IPS officer and former MP from Jamshedpur.
Banna Gupta against Saryu Rai in Jamshedpur West
Similarly, in Jamshedpur West, NDA ally JDU’s Saryu Rai and Congress’s Banna Gupta will face off. He is the Minister of Health in the current government. Former BJP MLA Satyendra Tiwari will challenge JMM leader and cabinet minister Mithilesh Thakur from the Garhwa seat. In Bhavnathpur, outgoing BJP MLA Bhanu Pratap Shahi is contesting against JMM leader Anant Pratap Dev (Raja Nagargarh). BJP’s Kamlesh Singh and RJD state president Sanjay Singh Yadav will face off in Hussainabad. Let us tell you that Kamlesh Singh won the Hussainabad elections in 2019 on NCP ticket and joined the BJP some time ago.
BJP’s focus on 14 seats in Kolhan region
This time, in the Jharkhand elections, all eyes will be on the Kolhan division. In 2019, the BJP had to face defeat in all 14 seats in Kolhan division. This time PM Modi also visited Kolhan and BJP’s morale is at its peak because Kolhan Tiger Champai Soren is now with him. He has a lot of influence in this area. In Lohardaga seat, outgoing Finance Minister and Congress MLA Rameshwar Oraon is facing a challenge from AJSU i.e. All Jharkhand Students Union candidate Neeru Shanti Bhagat. Let us tell you that AJSU is part of the National Democratic Alliance.
Vikas Munda vs Raja Peter in Tamar seat
There is a contest for the Tamar Assembly seat between JDU’s Raja Peter and two-time JMM MLA leader Vikas Munda. Raja Peter is also a former prime minister and has been in prison for a long time accused of the murder of former minister and popular Tamar MP Ramesh Singh Munda. Vikas Munda is the son of former MLA Ramesh Munda. Raja Peter had defeated the sitting CM and JMM supremo Shibu Soren in the by-elections. In Kolhan itself, Meera Munda will enter politics for the first time, wife of former CM and former Union minister Arjun Munda. She is trying her luck from the Potka seat.
Geeta Koda vs. Sonaram Sinku in Jagannathpur
Geeta Koda, wife of former CM Madhu Koda, is contesting the elections from Jagannathpur on the BJP ticket. Geeta Koda was a Congress MP from Singhbhum seat and had joined the BJP just before the Lok Sabha elections. In the last assembly elections, Congress’s Sonaram Sinku won the Jagannathpur seat and this time too the party has expressed confidence in Sinku. Babulal Soren, son of Champai Soren, is contesting from Ghatshila on BJP ticket. He will face a challenge from outgoing JMM MLA Ramdas Soren.
