Khunti Lok Sabha constituency is the most keenly watched one in Jharkhand in the ongoing elections. Union Minister Arjun Munda, the adivasi face of the Narendra Modi government and the sitting MP, is in the fray yet again from the seat reserved for tribal candidates. He faces Kali Charan Munda of the Congress, who lost by just 1,445 votes in 2019.
The battle for Khunti, the birth place of tribal icon Birsa Munda, is yet again a close one. Kali Charan Munda, the son of influential tribal leader Muchirai Munda, harps on issues pertaining to adivasi pride. He says the BJP's policies are hurting adivasi traditions, and that the threat of abolishing reservation is real. He also seeks to drive home the message that the BJP has not cared about the problems of the people at the grassroots. “People say their lives have taken a turn for the worse in the last 10 years. They have made up their mind to teach the BJP a lesson,” he says.
Arjun Munda refutes the charges. “They want tribals to remain downtrodden so that they can propagate myths. They claim that reservation will end,” he says. “Can reservation end in this country?” He is also banking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's image as a leader who has ensured that welfare schemes reached the beneficiaries.
There are 14 Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand, and the polls, held in four phases, started on May 13. Historically, the BJP has dominated the Lok Sabha polls in the state. The All Jharkhand Students Union, which has a support base among the OBCs, is the BJP's ally, while the INDIA bloc comprises the Congress, the JMM, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Left parties.
The battle for Khunti shows that the INDIA bloc can give the NDA a fight in at least the five tribal seats. However, it also shows that the opposition coalition could face problems, especially with rebel candidates threatening to play spoilsport in multiple seats, including Khunti. A former JMM legislator is contesting as an independent from Khunti. While Arjun Munda is contesting again, the BJP has changed its sitting MPs in many other seats.
The elections are taking place against the backdrop of the arrest of former chief minister Hemant Soren by the Enforcement Directorate. If INDIA bloc is projecting this as the Modi dispensation's alleged misuse of investigating agencies and as an affront to the adivasi pride, among the BJP's main talking points is the purported corruption in the Soren family.
The two sides are also criticising each other's track record on governance. The BJP claims that the JMM-led government has failed to meet the expectations of the people, while the INDIA bloc says Modi's promises since 2014 have remained unfulfilled. Another key issue raised by the INDIA bloc is the alleged plan of the BJP to change the Constitution. “It is not an ordinary election,” says state Congress president Rajesh Thakur. “Our Constitution is in danger. It is a fight to protect our democracy.”
