In the ongoing Ghatsila Assembly by-election in the East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) candidate, Somesh Chandra Soren, has established a significant lead. After the conclusion of the third round of vote counting, JMM’s Somesh Chandra Soren secured 16,110 votes. In contrast, his closest rival, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Babulal Soren, garnered 8,569 votes. This puts the JMM candidate ahead by a substantial margin of approximately 7,541 votes, indicating strong voter preference.
The counting process for this reserved seat (Scheduled Tribe) is underway, with security measures in place to ensure transparency. Other candidates in the fray also received votes in this round. Ramdas Murmu of the Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM) obtained 5,278 votes. Smaller parties and independent candidates also registered their presence. For instance, Panchanan Soren of the Bharat Adivasi Party received 157 votes, and Parvati Hansda of the Peoples Party of India (Democratic) secured 60 votes. Among the independent candidates, Mansa Ram Hansda received 106, Manoj Kumar Singh 114, Dr. Shrilal Kisku 306, and Vikas Hembram 212 votes. Notably, 505 voters opted for ‘None of the Above’ (NOTA), reflecting diverse voter sentiments. The final results are anticipated once all counting rounds are completed.