Ranchi: A day after the NDA gathered all its 24 legislators in a city hotel, the Congress followed suit on Wednesday, on the eve of the Rajya Sabha election for two seats in the state.
Congress Preparations
Congress spokesperson Lal Kishorenath Shahdeo said that as per the plan, all party MLAs, along with poll observers, will depart for the state assembly together at 9 am. The voting will take place from 9 am to 4 pm, and counting is expected to begin from 5 pm.
AICC Jharkhand affairs in-charge K Raju and state party president Keshav Mahto Kamlesh, along with other senior functionaries, held a series of meetings with Congress MLAs to finetune modalities. “Both INDIA bloc candidates will win,” reiterated Kamlesh, adding that the meetings are part of routine preparations ahead of the election.
Later in the evening, Chief Minister Hemant Soren also huddled with all JMM MLAs at his residence. “Mock poll was conducted on Wednesday night which was smooth,” said an MLA. Another mock poll is expected to be conducted on Thursday night.
NDA's Strategy
The NDA, which is backing independent candidate and outgoing Rajya Sabha MP from Andhra Pradesh, Parimal Nathwani, released a group picture of all its 24 MLAs along with party president Aditya Sahu on Thursday after mock poll training, from the hotel.
“State president Aditya Sahu and leader of the opposition Babulal Marandi briefed the MLAs on the voting process since many are new to the assembly. The NDA is confident about the victory of the candidate it is backing,” the BJP said in a statement.
Numbers Game
In the 81-member assembly, a candidate requires 28 first-preference votes to win. With 56 MLAs, the INDIA bloc will clinch both seats if its entire flock remains intact. The NDA, with 24 MLAs, is short by 4.
Sahu said, “MLAs from the opposition camp will vote for Nathwani based on their conscience and national interest.”
In response, Congress spokesperson Shahdeo said, “There is widespread dissatisfaction among NDA MLAs regarding the ‘outsider’ candidate.”
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About the Author: ASRP Mukesh holds over 15 years of journalistic experience. He covers government, politics, and human interest stories from Jharkhand.
