AJSU sends Hatia shockwaves to political heavyweights 

Sahay loses deposit, slips to fourth position

VIJAY DEO JHA

RANCHI 

Hatia has emphatically endorsed its tryst with a new political destiny whose crafty author is a bestseller called AJSU chief Sudesh Kumar Mahto and the party candidate Naveen Jaisawal. In a stunning electoral surge, Jaisawal netted41,566 votes in a fierce battle and defeated his nearest JVM rival Ajay Nath Sahdeo by a margin of 11,884 votes. Sahdeo could manage 29,682 votes.

But candidates of the two national parties Ramji Lal Sarda of the BJP and Sunil Sahay of the Congress; suffered so miserably that their respective party could not venture beyond tailor-made statement that the party will do introspection of such unexpected defeat. The BJP got 26,151 votes and slipped to third position. But the Congress not only slipped to fourth position but lost the deposit despite Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahay had thrown his weight behind his brother; Sunil. The result was not so unexpected except for Jaisawal who probably would not have thought of a huge support in Hatia.

“Huge. My God,” Jaisawal gasped in a private moment after the result was declared. And what he said publicly reflected what he had expressed privately.

“It is all because of the trust of people in me and my party which enabled me to get support from cross section of the society. I am an ordinary person who has been entrusted with a huge responsibility. This is not a victory, this is a responsibility. The victory is theirs (people), what I have got is a tough job,” he said after the result on Friday.  

From first round of counting and till result was declared Jaisawal remained the stakeholder of the first position while his rivals were fighting to end as runner-up with respectable tally. 

Jaisawal has emerged as an alchemised who created a winner weave in which the people of Hatia glimpse glimmer of a better tomorrow. Several myths got shattered in Hatia. Muslims shook off their calcified loyalties towards the Congress and shifted towards the AJSU Party largely and the JVM; partially. The Vaisya vote which traditionally voted for the BJP embraced the AJSU Party.

Those in the BJP and the Congress who made a claim over Hatia saying the parties have been winning the seat; were left eating a crow and found it difficult to suggest probable reasons of their defeat.

“The party got defeated because of low turn-out of urban voters. One of our top leaders Arjun Munda could not turn up for campaigning because of his illness. These affected our poll prospect. The BJP will introspect,” state BJP president Dineshnanda Goswami made a brief statement. The reaction of Congress president Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu was remarkably close to the BJP in referring vague adjectives.

But their statements sufficiently revealed that the party has least ground support in the rural area that largely voted for the AJSU candidate. If anybody competed with AJSU in the rural area it was Virendra Bhagat who netted 17559 votes. True that urban never remained stronghold of the AJSU. But the poll sheet reveals that the AJSU got support in the urban area also.

As triumphal troupes began to trickle past the bungalow of AJSU chief kicking up confetti clouds, a surreal silence closed in on the office and residence of political parties and their respective bosses.

Defeat had never knocked so hard at these gates. Subodh Kant had never expected that he will be shown the door this way. Sarda’s last push for assembly was so rudely knocked that the old man has signaled resignation to the fate. “It is fate. I did best. What else I can do?” he said.    

Today was a day when famed gift of the gab seemed to have deserted JVM chief Babulal Marandi who had announced Hatia as the beginning of big ticket election 2014. He sounded like a superannuated big gun shooting blanks. At this moment he can feel solace in the defeat of the Congress.

Perhaps they will begin to, once they have recovered from the shock of electric Sudesh.