E-Paper
Counting of votes start tomorrow
Counting of votes for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be taken up tomorrow to decide the fate of 1489 candidates who contested the five phase elections from November 25 to December 18.
Counting of votes for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be taken up tomorrow to decide the fate of 1489 candidates who contested the five phase elections from November 25 to December 18.
Central Para-Military forces will be deployed in all counting centres, officials said.
The BJP-JD(U), Congress-Jharkhand Vikash Morcha (Prajantrik) and RJD, LJP, CPI, CPI(M) and Maoist Coordination Committee (MCC) are the three main alliances.
Of the 1489 candidates, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, which has no alliance, put up the maximum number of 79 candidates.
The Bahujan Samaj Party contested 78 seats, BJP 67, Congress 61, Rashtriya Janata Dal 54, AJSU 54, Trinamool Congress 37 and CPI(Marxist Leninist-Liberation) 33.
The Congress in alliance with former chief minister Babulal Marandi's Jharkhand Vikash Morcha (Prajatantrik) contested all seats and had friendly contest in five.
Marandi was in the BJP during the 2005 assembly election, but parted ways with the saffron party and floated his own party the JVM(P) in 2006.
Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee chief Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu is seeking re-election from Ghatshila, senior party leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Stephen Marandi from Dumka. Another senior Congress leader and Assembly Speaker Alamgir Alam fought from Pakur.
JMM chief Shibu Soren has reportedly indicated that he was ready to form an alliance with any party or front after the results as "nobody was untouchable in politics."