The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) failed to win any seat on its electoral debut in Assam where the Hemant Soren-led party fielded candidates on 16 assembly seats, aiming for support from the tea tribes who migrated from Jharkhand and other parts to the northeastern state during the British period.
Chief minister Hemant Soren and his wife Kalpana Soren campaigned extensively in Assam, raising issues concerning the tea tribes, including granting scheduled tribe status to the community, which currently makes up around 17% of Assam’s total population (Census 2011).
Tea-tribes as they are called in Assam are a community of workers or families of former workers in tea gardens spread across most districts of Upper Assam. The workers were brought by British tea planters from West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and present Jharkhand in several phases from the mid-19th and mid-20th centuries.
Defending the party’s decision to make its electoral debut in Assam and the outcome, JMM general secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya said the party had established its ‘political footprint’ in Assam and would build upon it in the future.
“We have registered our political footprint in Assam. We contested only 16 seats and received around 1.5% of the total votes. We came in third place on 10 seats and secured second place at two locations. We will continue to advance the struggle for the tribals in that state. We thank the people of Assam for showing love and blessings; this gives us the energy to move forward,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“We have registered our political footprint in Assam. We contested only 16 seats and received around 1.5% of the total votes. We came in third place on 10 seats and secured second place at two locations. We will continue to advance the struggle for the tribals in that state. We thank the people of Assam for showing love and blessings; this gives us the energy to move forward,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers celebrated the party’s performance in West Bengal and Assam by distributing sweets at the party’s state headquarters here.
Speaking to reporters, Jharkhand Opposition leader Babulal Marandi said the victory in West Bengal stemmed from the electorate’s trust in PM Modi who promised to end the Trinamool Congress’s ‘hooliganism’.
“We have seen the gundaraj of the TMC during the last 15 years of its rule. Our party led by the PM and the home minister stood behind the people of the state. The PM promised to end the hooliganism of the TMC in West Bengal. People trust the PM and they responded with a thumping win for the BJP,” he added.