Ranchi: JMM-backed candidates wrested BJP strongholds of Giridih and Deoghar, giving the ruling party enough reasons to rejoice but it failed to make inroads in Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) in civic polls that should also serve as an eye-opener for the ruling govt on more efforts needed to woo urban voters.In RMC polls, BJP-backed candidate Roshini Khalkho retained the mayor post, trouncing Congress-supported nominee Rama Khalkho. JMM-backed Anand Vijay Kujur finished a distant third.In the run-up to the civic body polls, voting for which took place on Feb 23, JMM had made clear its intentions to go solo with an aim to expand its presence in urban areas.Even though the polls weren’t on party lines, every party went the extra mile to back candidates of its choice.Of 48 urban local bodies in the state, counting began on Friday and continued till late on Saturday in some areas. Besides 9 corporations, there are 20 nagar parishads and 19 nagar panchayats.Among the corporations, Congress pocketed one, BJP three (Ranchi, Adityapur & Palamu) and the rest were won by independents or BJP rebels.In Santhal Pargana and Kolhan regions, BJP, which is in opposition in the state, took serious beating as party-backed candidates suffered defeats in several local bodies, including Dumka, Deoghar, Jamtara, Basukinath, Godda, Sahibganj and Pakur.BJP had even deployed heavy manpower across all regions for hectic campaigning to consolidate its fort in urban areas, after facing electoral routs during Lok Sabha and assembly polls in 2024.Political observers claimed that beyond organisational gaps and rebel candidates in Santhal Pargana, the recent controversy surrounding proposed UGC regulations may have irked urban voters against BJP.A senior BJP member in Dumka said, “We cannot ignore the discussions among urban youths was around the UGC issue despite civic body polls being local in nature.”Similarly, in Kolhan region which has eight ULBs, BJP could only win one corporation, while the other went to Congress. JMM-backed candidates won in five (nagar parishad chairperson posts) and one independent.State BJP president Aditya Sahu alleged that despite coalition govt misusing official machinery, they did well in the civic polls. “Candidates backed by us won in several areas and in decent numbers despite attempts by the ruling coalition govt’s misuse of power to influence polling. In places like Chakradharpur, Chaibasa, Chas and Deoghar, our candidates suffered due to misuse of administrative powers,” he alleged.Hitting out at BJP, Congress general secretary Alok Kumar Dubey said, “When it wins, it mocks the opposition, but when it loses, BJP quickly cries foul.”JMM’s spokesperson Manoj Pandey said, “Candidates backed by us did extremely well, including in urban pockets, which will now be a serious concern for BJP.”(With inputs from Rajesh Pandey in Dumka)
