Jharkhand Assembly Polls 2019: Here is how BJP lost the chance to form the government

On Monday, the results of the Jharkhand Assembly polls were declared. The opposition alliance comprising Congress, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, and Rashtriya Janata Dal secured 47 seats, which is more than the halfway mark in the Jharkhand Assembly with a combined vote share of 35.35%. On the other hand, the incumbent BJP won from only 25 constituencies with a vote share of 33.37%. However, close scrutiny of the poll results data indicates that BJP could have been in a position to form the government once again if they had a pre-poll alliance with All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU). 

Read: Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi Congratulates Allies On 'decisive Win' In Jharkhand Elections

Here is what the election data shows: 

Out of 81 constituencies, 15 of them stand out as far as the BJP’s fortunes are concerned. In these seats, AJSU has polled more votes than the loss margin of the BJP. These seats include Silli where BJP did not put up a candidate against the AJSU chief Sudesh Mahto, who won by a margin of 20,200 votes and Hussainabad, where BJP supported Vinod Singh, an independent candidate. 

Read: People Have Defeated BJP's Divisive Politics:Sonia Gandhi On Jharkhand's 'special' Victory

In the eventuality that both parties would have contested the polls together, the opposition alliance would have lost 13 seats. In such a scenario, the BJP-led alliance could have secured 40 seats in contrast to the Congress-JMM-RJD tie-up's tally of 34 seats. This could have paved the way for the former to form the government with the support of MLAs from smaller parties.  

Read: WATCH | Jharkhand Polls: JMM Chief Hemant Soren Cycles To Parents' House To Seek Blessings

Election results in the past 

The Jharkhand Assembly election was conducted in 5 phases. While the polls commenced on November 30, the other phases of voting took place on December 7, 12, 16 and 20. The approximate voter turnout for all 81 assembly constituencies of Jharkhand was 65.17%. In the 2014 assembly election, the BJP alliance had won 42 out of 81 seats in the Jharkhand Assembly elections. While the BJP emerged as the single-largest party winning 37 seats, its pre-poll ally AJSU won 5 seats helping it form the government. 

Read: Hemant Soren Wins Dumka & Barhait: 'Saryu Rai's Decision Made Jharkhand Polls Interesting'