Jharkhand assembly elections: Congress reveals initial 21 candidates, Banna Gupta included for Jamshedpur West | LIST

Jharkhand assembly elections 2024: The Central Election Committee (CEC) of Congress announced the list of 21 candidates for the upcoming Jharkhand Assembly elections on Monday, October 21. The list includes prominent figures like Ajoy Kumar, who will contest from Jamshedpur East, Irfan Ansari from Jamtara, Pradeep Yadav from Poreyahat, Jai Prakash Patel from Mandu, Banna Gupta from Jamshedpur West, and Rameshwar Oraon from Lohardaga.

Key candidate selections

Ajoy Kumar, a well-known leader, has been chosen to represent Jamshedpur East, while Banna Gupta will contest from Jamshedpur West. The inclusion of figures like Irfan Ansari from Jamtara and Rameshwar Oraon from Lohardaga reflects the party's strategy of fielding experienced candidates to secure key constituencies.

कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष श्री @kharge की अध्यक्षता में आयोजित 'केंद्रीय चुनाव समिति' की बैठक में झारखंड विधानसभा चुनाव के लिए कांग्रेस उम्मीदवारों की लिस्ट। pic.twitter.com/m4x68el1AD

— Congress (@INCIndia) October 21, 2024

Earlier in the day, the Congress CEC met to finalize candidates for both the Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly elections. This meeting followed the screening of potential candidates for the Maharashtra Assembly polls, with names cleared for 62 constituencies for the CEC's consideration. Notably, Ravindra Chavan, son of Vasantrao Chavan, was announced as the party's candidate for the Nanded parliamentary constituency by-election, necessitated by Vasantrao’s passing in August.

Upcoming Jharkhand assembly elections

Jharkhand will witness elections in two phases, on November 13 and November 20, with counting scheduled for November 23. Approximately 2.60 crore electors, including 11.84 lakh first-time voters, and over a lakh persons with disabilities, third-gender individuals, and senior citizens, are expected to cast their votes.

The BJP, which lost power to the JMM-led alliance in 2019, is eager to reclaim its position in the tribal-dominated state. In the previous assembly elections, the JMM-led alliance secured 47 seats, ousting the BJP, which won 25 seats. The upcoming elections are expected to be a critical battle for both parties.