Cong concedes defeat

The Congress in Jharkhand slipped from its previous tally of seven to just one with Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahays lone victory in Ranchi. The BJP won eight of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state. The JMM won two seatsits chief Shibu Soren won both from the Dumka parliamentary seat and also the by-election to the Jamtara assembly seat.

Acknowledging defeat,Congress state incharge Keshava Rao said,I understand the mandate is against the partys failure to address the concerns of the people and promote leadership among the adivasis.

The BJPs win was attributed to anti-incumbency against the UPA and a split in the UPA votes due to a failure of its constituents to arrive at a seat sharing arrangement. The BJP not only wrested Godda,Dhanbad,Khunti and Lohardaga from the Congress,it also defeated the JMM in Rajmahal,Jamshedpur and Giridih and the CPI in Hazaribagh. All four former chief ministers of the stateShibu Soren,Babulal Marandi,Arjun Munda and Madhu Kodawon.