Ranchi, Oct 15 (PTI) With the Election Commission announcing the poll dates for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly, the stage is set for a direct contest between the ruling JMM-led coalition and the NDA. With the current assembly's term concluding in January, the stakes are high for both alliances.

The Assembly polls will be held in two phases on November 13 and 20 and counting will take place on November 23, the Election Commission announced on Tuesday.

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The BJP-led NDA has already started campaigning to regain lost ground, deploying Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma who have been raising the issues of "Bangladeshi infiltration" and "rampant corruption".

In response, the JMM-led ruling alliance, under Chief Minister Hemant Soren, is countering with a focus on welfare schemes, such as the Abua Awas Yojna and Maiyan Samman Yojna, which increases financial assistance to women aged 18-50 from Rs 12,000 to Rs 30,000 annually.

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The opposition INDIA bloc is also intensifying efforts to challenge the NDA's ambitions.

Key factors that are likely to influence the election include the BJP's welfare schemes and the arrest and subsequent bail of Soren by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The ruling alliance claims the arrest was politically motivated, as Soren was detained in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land fraud.

In the 2019 assembly elections, the contest was close, with the JMM winning 30 seats and the BJP securing 25, down from 37 in 2014. The JMM-Congress-RJD alliance won a comfortable majority with 47 seats.

The BJP has announced that its seat-sharing arrangement within the NDA is "almost final," with the first list of candidates expected within the next 48 hours.

According to the proposed arrangement, the Sudesh Mahto-led AJSU Party will contest 9-11 seats, while the Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) will field candidates in two constituencies. Talks regarding seat-sharing with LJP (Ram Vilas) are scheduled for Wednesday or Thursday, pending the return of its chief Chirag Paswan from abroad.

On Monday, Soren confirmed that the JMM-led alliance will contest all 81 seats, although seat-sharing with allies is yet to be finalised. The Congress said it will contest the polls in alliance with the JMM, with a decision on seat-sharing expected soon.

Currently, the strength of the assembly stands at 74, with the JMM-led ruling alliance comprising 44 members — 26 from the JMM, 17 from Congress, and one from RJD.

Two JMM legislators, Nalin Soren and Joba Majhi, are now members of Parliament, while Jama legislator Sita Soren resigned to contest the Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket. Additionally, Borio MLA Lobin Hembrom was recently disqualified under the anti-defection law.

Similarly, the BJP's strength has decreased to 23, with two of its MLAs—Dhulu Mahto (Baghmara) and Manish Jaiswal (Hazaribag)—having contested Lok Sabha polls and now serving as MPs. Mandu MLA Jaiprakash Bhai Patel, who joined Congress before the Lok Sabha elections, was also disqualified under the anti-defection law.

Former CM Champai Soren, along with Independent MLA Amit Kumar Yadav from Barkatha, has joined the BJP. Additionally, Kamlesh Singh, the lone NCP legislator in Jharkhand, joined the saffron party on October 4. The AJSU Party currently has three MLAs, while the NCP and CPI(ML) have one MLA each, alongside two Independents.

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