Jharkhand Election Phase 1: The first phase of the Jharkhand Assembly Election 2024 is underway today, November 13. In this phase, voting is taking place across 43 assembly seats spread across 15 districts. A total of 683 candidates are contesting in this phase, vying to secure their positions in the state legislature. Voting resume at 7 AM and concluded at 5 PM. On some polling booth voting would concluded at 4 PM.
Distribution of Seats in the First Phase
In the first phase, the district of East Singhbhum has the highest number of seats, with six assembly constituencies participating in the vote. Following closely, Palamu, West Singhbhum, and Ranchi districts each have five assembly constituencies where polling is happening today. Kodarma and Ramgarh districts have the fewest seats in this phase, with just one assembly constituency each.
Key Constituencies and Prominent Candidates
Several high-profile seats are at the forefront in this phase, with intense competition between prominent leaders. Some of the notable constituencies include:
- Saraikela: Former Chief Minister Champai Soren is contesting from Saraikela as a BJP candidate, having joined the BJP just a few months ago in August.
- Jamshedpur West: Congress’s Health Minister Banna Gupta is up against JDU leader Saryu Roy. Notably, Saryu Roy made headlines in 2019 when he defeated the then Chief Minister Raghubar Das.
- Jamshedpur East: A key contest is also taking place in Jamshedpur East, where Congress candidate Ajoy Kumar is competing against Purnima Das, the BJP candidate and daughter-in-law of former Chief Minister Raghubar Das.
- Jagannathpur: Here, BJP’s Geeta Koda, who is the wife of former Chief Minister Madhu Koda, faces Congress leader Sona Ram Sinku.
- Ranchi: This is a significant battleground with BJP’s veteran leader Chandreshwar Prasad Singh (known as CP Singh), who has been an MLA since 1996, competing against Mahua Maji of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), who is also a Rajya Sabha MP.
Major Alliances and Political Dynamics
The primary contest in this election is seen between the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led grand alliance (Mahagathbandhan) and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
- Mahagathbandhan: JMM has fielded candidates on 23 seats, Congress on 17, and Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on five seats. However, there is some intra-alliance friction, as two of RJD’s candidates are contesting against other Mahagathbandhan candidates, adding a layer of internal competition.
- NDA: The BJP is contesting on 36 out of the 43 seats in this phase. Other parties in the NDA alliance include All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), which has fielded candidates in four seats; Janata Dal (United) (JDU), which is contesting in two seats; and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJP-R), with a candidate in one seat.
Several smaller parties are also in the fray, hoping to impact the results and make the contests even more unpredictable.
