BJP releases 1st list of 66 candidates for Jharkhand Assembly polls; ex-Hemant Soren aide Champai Soren included

Champai Soren, who was once a close aide of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, left the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and joined the BJP in August.

The list also includes Champai Soren's son, Babulal Soren, and Sita Soren, the sister-in-law of Hemant Soren.

Babulal Marandi, president of the Jharkhand BJP, will contest from Dhanwar, while Champai Soren and his son will run for seats in Saraikella and Ghatshila, respectively.

Sita Soren will be BJP's candidate from Jamtara.

Other notable names on the list include Geeta Koda, running from Jagannathpur, former Union minister Sudarshan Bhagat from Gumla, and Meera Munda, wife of former Union Minister Arjun Munda, contesting from Potka.

Ragini Singh has been nominated from Jharia, Prunima Das Sahu from Jamshedpur East, and Pushpa Devi Buiyan from Chhatarpur.

The BJP will contest 68 seats, while its allies—the All Jharkhand Students' Union—will field candidates in 10 seats, Janata Dal (United) in two, and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) in one.

Jharkhand's elections will take place in two phases, on November 13 and 20, with vote counting scheduled for November 23.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, the JMM, part of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), contested 43 seats, while the Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal ran for 31 and seven seats, respectively.

The UPA won 47 seats, securing a victory over the BJP, which won 25 seats.