State Vote
Hemant Soren returns to power in Jharkhand with swollen mandate
This story was originally published at 17:42 IST on 23 November 2024
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NEW DELHI – The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is set to retain power in Jharkhand with an increased tally in the 81-member Assembly. The alliance led by Chief Minister Hemant Soren was way ahead of the rival National Democratic Alliance and was leading in over two-thirds of the seats in the state. At 1600 IST, the JMM-led alliance was leading on 55 seats, against 25 seats on which the NDA candidates were ahead, data released by the Election Commission of India showed. In 2019, the JMM-led alliance had won 47 seats.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha had won five seats and was leading on 29, the Congress was ahead on 15 seats, the Rashtriya Janata Dal four, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation had won one seat and was leading on another. The JMM's vote share increased by over four percentage points to 23% and the Congress’ vote share increased by over one percentage point to 15%.
On other hand, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance was leading on 25 seats. The BJP was leading on 21 seats, three down from the 2019 election, and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Janata Dal (United) and All Jharkhand Students Union were leading on one seat each. The BJP's vote share was nearly 33%, almost similar to the votes it polled in 2019.
Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha was leading on one seat.
The election results suggested that the JMM was successful in maintaining its hold on the tribal votes. The alliance was leading on 27 out of 28 seats reserved for the scheduled tribes. The BJP could get ahead on just one--the Seriakella seat of former chief minister Champai Soren, who joined the BJP in August this year after quitting the JMM. It seems that Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate mobilised the tribal voters in favour of the JMM. The BJP lost Khunti and Torpa tribal seats, which it had won in 2019. The tribals, Muslims and Christians votes also seem to have consolidated behind the JMM-led alliance.
Apart from this, the JMM government's Maiya Samman Scheme also worked in its favour as the women voters dominate several seats in the state. The alliance promised to increase the amount under the Maiya Samman scheme from INR 1,000 to INR 2,500.
BJP'S FAILURE
The BJP failed in breaching the tribal belt despite the infiltration narrative and slogans like Batenge to Katenge and Ek hain to safe hain. Unlike 2019, this time around, the BJP formed an alliance with All Jharkhand Students Union, JD (U) and LJP (Ramvilas). The BJP contested 68 seats.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his rallies, raised the issue of infiltration by Bangladeshis in tribal areas. Modi called the JMM-led alliance as infiltrators' alliance and "mafia ka ghulam (mafia’s slave)" for allegedly supporting Bangladeshi infiltrators, and added that the security, prosperity and stability of tribals was at stake in the state.
As trend showed, the BJP's narrative was not accepted by the people. The BJP’s strategy to forge an alliance with the All Jharkhand Students Union also didn't yield results for the saffron party. The entry of former chief minister Champai Soren also didn’t have much of an impact in tribal belt. While Champai Soren won his Seraikella seat, he could not swing seats for the BJP in the Kolhan division. The party was leading on only three, including Champai Soren's Seraikella seat, out of 14 seats in Kolhan division.
The state went to polls in two phases--Nov. 13 and Nov. 20. The voter turnout for 81 seats in Jharkhand was 67.74%. In the 2019 polls, the JMM-led alliance had won 47 seats, with the JMM winning 30 seats, Congress 16, and RJD 1. The BJP had won 25 seats. End
Reported by Kuldeep Singh
Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury
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