Gandey Bypolls: Jailed Ex-CM Hemant Soren's Wife Kalpana Defeats BJP's Dilip Varma In Political Debut

Jailed Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief Hemant Soren's wife Kalpana Soren won the Gandey bypolls on Tuesday

Jailed Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief Hemant Soren's wife Kalpana Soren won the Gandey bypolls on Tuesday. The bypoll was conducted in Gandey after JMM MLA Sarfaraz Ahmed resigned to contest the Rajya Sabha polls in December last year. Kalapana Soren's entry and a possible shift of baton in the Jharkhand Assembly have been speculated since Hemant Soren's arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the alleged land scam. 

Kalapana Soren defeated Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Dilip Verma by a margin of 27149 votes.

Winning her debut elections, Kalpana has officially entered the political arena after winning from Gandey Assembly seat. Banking upon the sympathy vote for her jailed Husband Hemant Soren who is in prison in connection, Kalpana Soren is likely to emerge as a powerful leader in Jharkhand politics.

This time, more than the Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand, the Assembly seat of Gandey was the talk of the town as big leaders of the I.N.D.I.A bloc were seen campaigning for Kalpana. Prominent leaders like Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav. Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren is also campaigning in Gandey for the JMM candidate.

A mother of two children, Kalpana Soren possess an MBA degree. Post Hemant Soren's arrest her name was top on the list for likely chief ministers in the state. 

In her election affidavit, Kalapana Soren has stated that she has jewellery worth Rs 91 lakh apart from investment of Rs 61 lakh in shares.

BJP Wins 8 Seats In Jharkhand LS Polls, JMM Trails At 3

The BJP-AJSU Party alliance that swept the Lok Sabha polls in Jharkhand in 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, although won in Jhakrkhand again but lost three crucial seats this time. The total tally in the state of the alliance stood at nine.

In 2019, the saffron party-led NDA had won 12 seats in Jharkhand, including one by ally AJSU Party.

This was the second time that the BJP and the AJSU Party contested elections in alliance for the second time in 2024.

The ruling JMM-led alliance in Jharkhand won all five tribal seats including Singhbhum, Khunti, Lohardaga, Dumka, and Rajmahal, giving a major jolt to the BJP.

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha performed well in three seats including Singhbhum, Rajmahal and Dumka.