Ranchi, Oct 15 (IANS): With the official announcement of the Jharkhand Assembly election dates, both the NDA and the INDIA bloc have expressed confidence in their respective victories.

Babulal Marandi, President of Jharkhand BJP, emphasised the importance of the election, framing it as crucial to "saving Jharkhand." He criticised the ruling JMM-Congress-RJD coalition, stating that the people are fed up with what he described as their "jungle raj" and are yearning for change.

Taking to social media platform X, Marandi wrote: “In the last five years, Jharkhand has been plagued by unemployment, crime, corruption, bad governance, and the appeasement of certain groups, while the Dalit, tribal, and backward communities have faced oppression. This election is about protecting the identity of Jharkhand’s bread, daughters, and soil. It is about safeguarding the existence of the tribal society from infiltrators while ensuring jobs, employment, and justice for the youth.”

He expressed confidence that voters would deliver a massive majority to the BJP and NDA, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On the other hand, Jharkhand Pradesh Congress President Keshav Mahto Kamlesh asserted that the INDIA bloc is fully prepared and confident of repeating its previous success. “The people of Jharkhand are firmly with the INDIA bloc,” he stated.

AJSU Party President Sudesh Mahto also welcomed the election dates, framing the contest as a fight against misrule. “This election is about defeating misrule. The people are desperate for change,” Mahto said.

Leader of the Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri declared that the “final countdown” has begun for the departure of the “tyrannical and corrupt JMM-Congress-RJD government.”

Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) raised questions about the BJP’s leadership, noting that the party has yet to announce its chief ministerial candidate. In a post on X, the JMM pointed out, “The BJP has sidelined their own leader Raghubar Das, so who will be their Chief Minister candidate?”

The Election Commission on Tuesday announced the dates for voting for all 81 Assembly seats in Jharkhand. The voting will take place in two phases on November 13 and 20. The counting of votes is scheduled for November 23. With the announcement of the election dates, the Model Code of Conduct has come into effect in the state.

Of the 81 seats in Jharkhand, nine are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 28 for Scheduled Tribes. In the first phase, elections will be held on 43 seats, while the remaining 38 will vote in the second phase.