Campaigning for the high-profile Ghatshila Assembly bypoll concluded on Friday evening, marking the end of an intense and high-stakes political contest that has turned into a matter of prestige for both the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Polling will be held on November 11, while the counting of votes is scheduled for November 14.
The bye-election, necessitated by the sudden demise of sitting MLA Ramdas Soren, has seen an aggressive campaign from all major political parties. Thirteen candidates are in the fray, but the primary contest remains triangular— between the JMM, BJP, and Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM).
Around 2.55 lakh voters will decide whether the INDIA bloc retains control of this seat or the BJP reclaims its former stronghold.
Chief Minister Hemant Soren and his wife, MLA Kalpana Soren, spearheaded the JMM’s campaign, camping in the constituency for several days and addressing multiple rallies and roadshows.
The party deployed over 50 senior leaders and executed a micro-level outreach plan focusing on women’s groups, OBC and Mahato voters, and grassroots mobilisation. The JMM has framed the contest as one between people’s trust in Hemant Soren’s leadership and the BJP’s attempt to regain lost ground.
For the BJP, Ghatshila represents an opportunity to reassert its organisational strength and political relevance in the tribal-dominated region.
The party’s campaign, led by state president Babulal Marandi and former Chief Ministers Arjun Munda and Raghubar Das, saw a flurry of rallies and booth-level outreach.
The bypoll also holds personal significance for former Chief Minister Champai Soren, who recently joined the BJP and whose son Somesh Soren is the party’s candidate. A victory would bolster Champai’s position within the BJP, while a defeat could be a setback to his political standing.
As the campaign drew to a close, verbal duels intensified. JMM leaders mocked the BJP for the absence of several star campaigners, claiming the party had accepted defeat in advance.
In response, BJP leaders asserted that the organisation, not individuals, determines electoral outcomes and expressed confidence in a BJP victory.
With the dust of campaigning now settled, Ghatshila awaits November 11— when voters will deliver a verdict that could shape the political course for both Hemant Soren and the BJP in Jharkhand’s eastern heartland.
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