Is Babulal Soren, Son of Former CM Champai Soren, the BJP's Candidate for Jharkhand's Ghatshila Bypoll?

Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Babulal Soren nominated by BJP for Ghatshila.
- By-election triggered by Ramdas Soren's death.
- Polling on November 11, with counting on November 14.
- Ghatshila constituency has 2,55,823 registered voters.
- Seat reserved for Scheduled Tribes.
Ranchi, Oct 15 (NationPress) – The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has officially announced the nomination of Babulal Soren, the son of ex-Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren, as its candidate for the by-election to the Ghatshila Assembly seat located in East Singhbhum district.
This decision was communicated via a notice issued on Wednesday by the party's national general secretary, Arun Singh.
Babulal Soren previously ran in the 2024 Assembly elections for the same seat but was defeated by Ramdas Soren, a candidate from the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
The need for this by-election arose due to the passing of Ramdas Soren three months ago.
In the 2024 elections, Ramdas Soren garnered 98,356 votes, while Babulal Soren came in second with 75,910 votes in Ghatshila.
The Election Commission issued a notification concerning the by-election on October 13. Candidates must file their nominations by October 21, and they can withdraw their nominations until October 24.
Voting is scheduled for November 11, with vote counting occurring on November 14, coinciding with the Bihar Assembly polls.
The Ghatshila Assembly seat is designated for Scheduled Tribes (ST). According to the Chief Electoral Officer of Jharkhand, there are 2,55,823 registered voters in the constituency—1,24,899 men and 1,30,921 women, highlighting a larger female voter base.
The recent voter list revision has resulted in an increase of 1,585 male voters and 2,871 female voters in the constituency.
A total of 300 polling stations have been established across 218 locations in the area. Twelve new polling stations have been added, while three older ones have been consolidated.
Election officials report that all essential preparations are almost finalized to guarantee a free, fair, and transparent voting process in Ghatshila.
The BJP also disclosed the names of candidates for other by-elections scheduled on the same day across various states.
As per the notification, the party has nominated Aga Syed Mohsin from Budgam and Devyani Rana from Nagrota for the Jammu and Kashmir bypolls.
Moreover, tickets have been allocated to Jay Dholakia from Nuapada in Odisha and Lankala Deepak Reddy from Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad.