The ruling BJP in the tribal dominated Jharkhand is heading for tough fight, as the contest has become multi-cornored.
All political parties have given their best to woo the voters as campaigning for the first phase of elections ended on Thursday. Spread over six districts, including Palamu, Gumla, Garhwa and Latehar, 13 assembly constituencies will go to polls in this phase on Saturday. The 81-member Jharkhand assembly will go to polls in five phases, between November 30 and December 20. Counting of votes will be held on December 23.
Top leaders of all political parties are reaching out to the public even as the BJP is staring at anti-incumbency. In 2014, the BJP went for an experiment by picking up a non-tribal leader as the chief minister of the state—Raghubar Das is the first non-tribal chief minister of Jharkhand.
After the Maharashtra crisis, the BJP is facing tough time with its allies, as all of its partners have decided to go solo. Das-led government has failed to form any pre-poll alliance, while its opposition United Progressive Alliance has managed to maintain its togetherness.
While addressing a rally in Chatra district, Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that the BJP-led government in the state had “buried” Maoist activities “20 feet under the earth”. He also said as of now, not a single corruption charge has been levelled against the Das-led BJP government. Shah, in another rally in Garhwa district, said Maoism was a hindrance to the development of Jharkhand and the Congress was the biggest obstacle to Jharkhand’s creation.
Responding to Shah's allegations, Hemant Soren, executive president of Jarkhand Mukti Morcha and the chief ministerial candidate of the UPA, said the BJP is a party of lies. "The BJP is a party of fake-propaganda. With fudged facts and figures, the BJP has always tried to mislead the public," Soren said while speaking to the WEEK at his official residence in Ranchi. He added that the BJP government has not done anything towards the welfare of tribals and its claims to have ended naxalism is a bunch of lies.
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While the BJP is taking credit for the abrogation of Article 370 and its efforts towards construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya after the apex court verdict, opposition parties claim that there is no space for national issues in Jharkhand state elections. "People of Jharkhand are more concerned about its local issues rather than fancy issues of Ram Temple or abrogation of Article 370. Development is completely stuck in the last five years of BJP government in the state," Babulal Marandi, former chief minister and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha president, told the WEEK.
Besides Amit Shah, Chief Minister Das, Soren, and Marand, All Jharkhand Students Union chief Sudesh Kumar Mahto also addressed rallies in different constituencies, asking people to come out and vote.
While the BJP has promised 33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs, Congress, AJSU are JMM are promising to increase reservation in jobs for Other Backward Castes to 27 per cent from the existing 14 per cent.
Thursday was also the last day for withdrawal of candidature for the third phase of polls. As many as 314 candidates are in the fray after scrutiny of nomination papers. Seventeen constituencies, spread over eight districts, including Ranchi, Koderma and Hazaribagh, will go to polls in the third phase on December 12.
