Parties try to sway tribal voters to their favour
Jamshedpur, May 9 : As the city gears up for the 17thLok Sabha election, the battle for Jamshedpur Parliamentary constituency is getting interesting with each passing day. Though a total of 24 candidates are in fray for elections, the main fight is between sitting MP and BJP candidate BidyutBaranMahto and Grand Alliance tribal candidate, Champai Soren, from Jamshedpur general seat. Both the candidates are facing neck to neck fight.
Soren, a JMM candidate, will take on BidyutBaranMahato, who is a Kurmi. ?The constituency votes on May 12 in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha polls.
The constituency comprises six assembly areas Jamshedpur East, Jamshedpur West, Jugsalai, Potka, Bahragora and Ghatshila.Kurmi population holds the key to poll success. Kurmis constitute over 2.5 lakh of the 16 lakh voters in the Jamshedpur Lok Sabha seat. Jugsalai and Bahragora assembly constituencies have the largest concentration of Kurmi votes. The BJP had successfully drawn Kurmi voters into its fold following the tainted yet influential Kurmi leader ShailendraMahato joining the party in the mid-Nineties.
Interestingly, Mahato candidates have won the seat seven times so far. And two Mahto candidates won the seat twice in succession out of the three times people here voted same candidate to Parliament for two consecutive terms.
While, BJP is bating more on the �Modi mania� mainly to woo voters of Jamshedpur East and West � the two urban assembly segments of the Jamshedpur Lok Sabha constituency and kurmi population in rest four assembly areas, Champai Soren is trying to cash on tribal sentiments. Soren is batting on his pro-labour image besides pinning on minorities� vote consolidations that constitutes 7 per cent.
The focus of Mahato�s campaign is make Modi the Prime Minister again.He has also listed his own efforts in bringing in international airport in Dhalbhumgarh, opening up half a dozen closed mines and starting the construction of Jugsalai railway over bridge, a 72-year-old demand of the people here.
On the otherhand with several manufacturing units hit by slowdown in production at Tata Motors� plant here and closure of other major industries like Tayo, revival of industrial belt is a major poll plank of JMM leader Champai Soren. According to JMM, hundreds of people are still migrating in search of jobs. The labour law would be amended in such a manner that the plight of worker is solved.
The JMM candidate�s apprehension is based on his rival�s presence in the four rural Assembly segments � Ghatshila, Potka, Baharagora and Jugsalai. To keep Mahto�s influence at bay and to check vote splitting, JMM is campaigning in the rural belt.
Factoids
- Mahto candidates have won Seven time in 17 general elections
- The Jamshedpur parliamentary constituency has 15,51,297 voters
- Lok Sabha constituency comprises the following six Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) segments BaharagoraGhatshila, Potka, Jugsalai, Jamshedpur East and Jamshedpur West
- There are nearly 1885 polling booths in as many as 1133 polling locations
- In 2014, BidyutBaranMahto registered his debut in Parliament by defeating Ajoy Kumar by a margin of 99874 votes
