Jharkhand Election 2019: 20 seats undergo polling in phase two today; CM Raghubar Das, state BJP chief Laxman Gilua among key candidates

Ranchi: Voting for the second of the five-phase Assembly election in 20 seats in Jharkhand will be held on Saturday and the Election Commission has deployed polling and security personnel for free, fair and peaceful polling. More than 42,000 security personnel, including central forces, have been deployed in the 20 constituencies spread across seven districts of the state, the police said. Polling will be held between 7 am and 5 pm in Jamshedpur(East) and Jamshedpur (West) constituencies, while in the rest of the 18 constituencies voters will exercise their franchise between 7 am and 3 pm, an EC release said. [caption id=“attachment_7749831” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Polling officials carry EVM machines and other polling materials on the eve of the second phase of Jharkhand Assembly election, at Tamar constituency. PTI[/caption] A total 47,24,968 voters, including women and third gender voters will decide the fate of 260 candidates, the EC sources said. A total of 29 women nominees and 73 Independents are in the fray on Saturday, they said. Sixteen of the 20 constituencies going to the polls are reserved for scheduled tribe candidates and one for the scheduled caste, the EC release said. The Assembly seats going to the polls are Baharagora, Ghatsila(ST), Potka(ST), Jugsalai(SC), Jamshedpur (East), Jamshedpur (West), Seraikela (ST), Chaibasa (ST), Majhgaon (ST), Jaganathpur (ST), Manoharpur (ST), Chakradharpur (ST), Kharsawan (ST), Tamar (ST), Torpa (ST), Khunti (ST), Mandar (ST), Sisai (ST), Simdega (ST) and Kolebira (ST). Among the prominent leaders whose fate will be sealed in the second phase of polling is outgoing Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das from Jamshedpur (East), where he will be challenged by his former cabinet colleague and Independent candidate Saryu Roy. Jharkhand Assembly Speaker Dinesh Oraon is contesting from Sisai on a BJP ticket, while BJP candidate and Jharkhand Rural Development Minister Neelkanth Singh Munda is in the fray in Khunti. BJP state unit president Laxman Gilua is contesting from Chakradharpur. The AJSU party candidate and Jharkhand Water Resources Minister Ramchandra Sahis is in the fray in the Jugsalai seat. Former Jharkhand PCC president Pradeep Kumar Balmachu, who has joined the AJSU party recently, is contesting from Ghatsila. JD(U)’s Jharkhand president Salkhan Murmu is contesting from Majhgaon and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha — Prajatantrik (JVMP) candidate and former HRD minister Bandhu Tirkey is contesting from Mandar. The BJP is contesting in all the 20 constituencies going for the polls in the second phase, while the opposition alliance of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Congress are contesting in 14 and six seats, respectively. The RJD, which has got a total of seven seats according to the seat-sharing formula by the three opposition parties has no candidate in the second phase of polling. AJSU party, an NDA ally which is contesting the Assembly elections on its own for the first time since the creation of Jharkhand, has fielded candidates in 12 seats where polling will be held in this phase. The JVMP has fielded candidates in all the 20 seats, while Bahujan Samaj Party is in the fray in 14 seats. The Left party CPI is contesting in two seats, while CPI-M is contesting in one and the NCP in two constituencies. Six candidates of All India Trinamool Congress are also in the fray in the second phase. The first phase had concluded on 30 November. The fifth and final phase of polling will be held on 20 December and counting will take place on 23 December.