On November 20, voting will be held for 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra and the remaining 38 assembly seats in the second phase of Jharkhand elections. These elections are not only a big test for regional satraps in any state. This will shape the national narrative for the opposition as well as the ruling coalition in the country. On the one hand, a victory for the National Democratic Alliance led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Maharashtra or Jharkhand will bring the ruling government back on track, burdened by its poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
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On the other hand, a win in any state would bring momentum back to the opposition India faction and prove that the setback in Haryana was a mistake while the broad sentiment remains in its favour. Importantly, the elections will not only decide whether Brand Modi stands the test of time, but it will also determine whether Dalits and OBCs, who have been crucial to the BJP’s victory at the Center and in many states, will , left the party and returned in the Lok Sabha elections.
The election results of both the states will come on November 23. A total of 4,136 candidates are in the fray for 288 seats in Maharashtra, including 2,086 independent contenders. However, this time, the political landscape is more fragmented with the separation of Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party over the past two years. Of the ruling Mahayuti alliance, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded 149 candidates, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has fielded 81 candidates and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar-led NCP has fielded 59 candidates. In the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) has 95 candidates and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) has 86 candidates.
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In the second phase in Jharkhand, voting will be held on 38 seats on November 20. Majority of the seats in the second phase are located in Santhal and Koylanchal areas. In this phase also, the fate of many veterans is going to be at stake. The reputation of current Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Speaker Rabindranath Mahato, former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi, former Deputy Chief Minister Sudesh Mahato, current ministers Irfan Ansari, Hafeezul Hasan, Deepika Pandey Singh, Baby Devi is at stake. A total of 528 candidates are in the fray in the second phase. In the first phase on November 13, 66.65 percent people had participated on 43 seats.
