NEW DELHI: Congress veteran Rameshwar Oraon is leading by over 28,000 votes in Jharkhand’s Lohardaga (ST) constituency after 14 of 18 counting rounds. Oraon has secured more than 83,000 votes, while AJSU Party’s Neru Shanti Bhagat trails with approximately 55,000 votes.
The Lohardaga (ST) seat, reserved for Scheduled Tribes, is crucial in the Jharkhand Assembly elections, where prominent leaders like Chief Minister Hemant Soren, BJP President Babulal Marandi, and Oraon are contesting key constituencies. Jharkhand’s elections were held in two phases, on November 13 and 20, with results being declared today.
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A seasoned leader of the Indian National Congress (INC), Rameshwar Oraon has served as Jharkhand’s Finance Minister and was a member of the 14th Lok Sabha. A former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from the 1972 batch, he was awarded the President’s Police Medal for distinguished service. Oraon resigned from the IPS in 2004 to join politics and won his first election on a Congress ticket.
Oraon, who has no criminal cases against him, declares a total net worth of ₹42.2 crore, comprising ₹2.4 crore in movable assets and ₹39.8 crore in immovable assets. He also reports liabilities of ₹19.4 lakh.
Neru Shanti Bhagat, representing the All-Jharkhand Students Union Party (AJSU), is Oraon’s primary competitor. Bhagat, 59, has a modest financial profile with assets worth ₹36.4 lakh, including ₹14.4 lahks in movable assets and ₹22 lahks in immovable properties. Professionally a politician and social worker, she has no criminal cases and carries liabilities of ₹3.8 lakh.
Lohardaga has a dynamic electoral history. In 2019, Rameshwar Oraon won the seat in the Congress, while the AJSU Party’s Kamal Kishore Bhagat claimed it in 2014 and 2009. With Oraon currently in the lead, the Congress looks poised to retain this vital constituency, signaling potential shifts in Jharkhand’s political landscape.