New Delhi: In Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh, the family borough of bureaucrat-turned-politician Yashwant Sinha, BJP candidate Manish Jaiswal is leading by 1,87,993 votes, according to Election Commission of India data as of 5.10 pm.
Sinha won the seat in 1998, 1999 and 2009. In all these years, it was only once that he lost — in 2004 — to UPA-backed Communist Party of India candidate Bhuvaneshwar Mehta. His son, Jayant Sinha won the seat in 2014, and then again in 2019 when he won by a larger margin of 4.79 lakh votes (67.4 percent of the vote share), nearly equal to the margin by which Prime Minister Narendra Modi won in Varanasi in that election.
However, this is the first time since 1998 that nobody from the Sinha family has contested the election.
Instead of Jayant Sinha, the BJP fielded Manish Jaiswal, a two-time MLA from Hazaribagh Sadar, while the Congress announced the candidacy of Jai Prakash Bhai Patel, a three-term MLA from Mandu. Patel is trailing with 2,54,351 votes.
Just before the BJP released its first list of candidates for the 2024 Lok Sabha, naming Jaiswal as its Hazaribagh candidate, instead of Jayant, the outgoing Hazaribagh MP posted on X that he requested party president J.P. Nadda to relieve him of his direct electoral duties so that he can focus his efforts “on combating global climate change in Bharat and around the world”.
I have requested Hon’ble Party President Shri @JPNadda ji to relieve me of my direct electoral duties so that I can focus my efforts on combating global climate change in Bharat and around the world. Of course, I will continue to work with the party on economic and governance…
— Jayant Sinha (Modi Ka Parivar) (@jayantsinha) March 2, 2024
“Of course, I will continue to work with the party on economic and governance issues,” he added in his 2 March post, opting out of the race. On 8 March, Jayant Sinha also posted a video on X with Jaiswal, wishing the Hazaribagh BJP candidate good luck in the election.
हजारीबाग लोकसभा से भाजपा प्रत्याशी श्री @Manishjhzb जी ने आज भेंट की।
उन्हें चुनाव हेतु हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं देता हूं। हम कमल को रिकॉर्ड मार्जिन से जिताएँगे। pic.twitter.com/IDuxJMT2tA
— Jayant Sinha (Modi Ka Parivar) (@jayantsinha) March 8, 2024
A month after the announcement, Yashwant Sinha addressed the media at his residence in Hazaribagh and pledged his support for the Congress candidate instead. “I have come forward in the role of a guardian by the sentiments of the people of Hazaribagh…My only aim has been to progress the constituency and will use my remaining energy to make J.P. Patel victorious,” he said.
With the father coming out in support of the Congress candidate and the son lending his support to the BJP candidate, the electoral fight in Hazaribagh seemed to have led to a split within the family over their political choices.
Voting for the constituency took place in the fifth phase on 20 May.
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