It's neck and neck in Ranchi

PRIZE FIGHT

The Ranchi Assembly seat could see a keen tussle between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress as it goes to the polls on February 15. Although Ranchi is traditionally a BJP stronghold, political observers say the chances of the Congress claiming the seat are bright this time.

The poll outcome in Ranchi is likely to be influenced by the 35,000-odd Muslim voters of the region. "The minority community will decide its choice of candidate a day or two before the elections," says one observer.

According to him, the BJP is unlikely to benefit from the split of the minority vote between the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal. The community will back a winning candidate and not the party, he said.

In this context, the chances of Congress candidate Gopal Sadhu seem bright. The younger brother of two-time Ranchi MP Shivprasad Sadhu, he is said to have the support of the sizable Bania population in the region.

The Congress also has the backing of about 30,000 Christians in a constituency having around 300,000 voters. The BJP, which is represented by the sitting MLA, CP Singh, will lose the seat due to intra-party squabbles and factionalism, sources say.

Some miffed second-rung BJP workers in the state fear that the party might permanently reserve the seat for Singh. He has been representing Ranchi ever since he won a by-election to the seat, after Yashwant Sinha vacated the seat in 1992 on being implicated in the Hawala scam. "Singh might have undertaken developmental work like the building of roads but, he has always contracted it to family members and friends. BJP workers have been sidelined in this process," says a source.

That the BJP is getting the jitters is evident in its intense efforts to mobilise its voter base in the constituency. The state government is also in the process of appeasing the Kurmi population in the region by deciding to notify them as a scheduled tribe.

The RJD, which is part of the three-cornered contest, is represented by Krishna Yadav. The party was the runner-up in the 2000 Assembly polls under JS Yadav in undivided Bihar.

Krishna Yadav, a candidate with a criminal record, is unlikely to do much damage to Congress chances, sources say.