Cong, JMM to contest 70 of 81 Jharkhand assembly seats: Hemant Soren
Ranchi, Oct 19: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Saturday said that the INDIA bloc partners will contest the upcoming assembly polls together and the Congress and the JMM will field candidates in 70 of 81 seats.
Seat-sharing talks are on with alliance partners - the RJD and the Left parties - for the remaining 11 seats, he said.
The assembly polls for 81 seats will be held in two phases on November 13 and 20, and counting will take place on November 23.
"INDIA bloc will contest the Jharkhand assembly polls together. It has been decided during the seat-sharing talks with the allies that the Congress and the JMM will field candidates in 70 of 81 seats," Soren said after meeting with the alliance partners here.
He said the decision was taken after consultations with allies and candidates would be announced soon.
Soren said the JMM-led alliance was confident of retaining power in the state on the back of its development work.
The NDA on Friday announced its seat-sharing formula among its partners. The BJP will contest 68 seats, AJSU Party 10, JD(U) 2 and LJP (Ram Vilas) 1.
Filing of nomination papers for 43 assembly constituencies of Jharkhand, which are going to polls on November 13 in the first phase, began on Friday and will continue till October 25.
In 2019, the JMM-led alliance won 47 seats in the Jharkhand assembly, including 30 of JMM and 16 of the Congress.
The BJP had secured 25 seats, JVM-P 3, AJSU Party 2, CPI-ML 1, NCP- 1 and independents 2.
Currently, the strength of the assembly stands at 74, with the JMM-led ruling alliance having 44 members.
Two JMM legislators, Nalin Soren and Joba Majhi, are now members of Parliament, while Jama legislator Sita Soren resigned to contest the Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket.
Additionally, Borio MLA Lobin Hembrom was recently disqualified under the anti-defection law.
Similarly, the BJP’s strength has decreased to 23, with two of its MLAs—Dhulu Mahto (Baghmara) and Manish Jaiswal (Hazaribag)—now serving as MPs.
Mandu MLA Jaiprakash Bhai Patel, who joined Congress before the Lok Sabha elections, was also disqualified under the anti-defection law.
Altogether 2.60 crore electors, including 11.84 lakh first-time voters and 1.13 lakh persons with disabilities (PwD), third gender and senior citizens over 85 years of age, are eligible to exercise their franchise in the upcoming elections.
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Father responds to age fraud allegations against IPL history's youngest buy 13 yr old Vaibhav
New Delhi (PTI): When Sanjiv Suryavanshi sold his farm land to fund his 10-year-old son Vaibhav's cricketing aspirations, little did he know that within three years the boy would be scripting history.
During the second and final day of the IPL mega auction in Jeddah, Vaibhav, at 13 years and eight months, became the youngest cricketer ever to be picked by a franchise as Rajasthan Royals bought him for Rs 1.10 crore.
Sanjiv, who owned farm land in his native Motipur village which is 15kms from Samastipur town in Bihar, was lost for words.
"Woh ab sirf humra bituwa nahi pura Bihar ka bituwa hai (He is not just my son now but entire Bihar's son)," Sanjiv told PTI over phone as his son is currently in Dubai for the U-19 Asia Cup.
"My son has worked hard. At the age of 8 years, he excelled at U-16 district trials. I would take him for his cricket coaching to Samastipur and then take him back," he recalled the days of hardships.
So were his finances in place as cricket is an investment?
"Not just investment, it's big investment. Aapko kya bataye humne toh apna zameen tak bech diya. Abhi bhi halat pura sudhra nahi (I have sold my land. Financial issues are still there)."
When asked about the controversies regarding Vaibhav's actual age which many believe is 15 years, the father was quick to clarify.
"When he was 8 and half years old he first appeared for BCCI bone test. He has already played India U-19. We don't fear anyone. He can again undergo age test," he sounded defiant.
Sanjiv said that Bihar Cricket Association president Rakesh Tiwary's "blessings" have always helped Vaibhav in his journey.
"Rakesh ji ka ashirwaad raha hai bahoot (Rakesh ji's blessings are there)."
His base price in the auction was Rs. 30 lakh and Delhi Capitals made the opening bid. RR entered the fray at Rs. 35 lakh and eventually got the better of DC to get the player on board.
So how did this bidding war happened?
"Rajasthan Royals had called him for trials in Nagpur. Vikram Rathour sir (batting coach) gave a match situation where he had to score 17 in an over. Bituwa ne 3 chakka mara. Trials mein aat chakka aur char chauwaa mara (He smashed three sixes. At trials, he hit eight sixes and four fours)," the father claimed proudly.
For a 13-year-old, it can be very difficult to understand what it means to earn a crore. So how does he plan to keep his young son away from monetary discussions?
"He just wants to play cricket and nothing else. A few years back he loved Doremon, not anymore," Sanjiv said.
BCA lauds selection
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BCA president Tiwary was all praise for the prodigy after his 1.10 crore bid for RR.
"Vaibhav Suryavanshi's incredible achievement at such a young age fills us with immense pride," Tiwary said in a statement.
"His journey from Bihar to the IPL is a reflection of his talent, hard work, and determination. The Bihar Cricket Association has always believed in nurturing young talent, and Vaibhav's success highlights the cricketing potential in our state.
"We are confident he will continue to shine and inspire aspiring cricketers across Bihar and beyond. I congratulate Vaibhav and his family."
