High-Stakes Battle: Assembly Polls Kick Off in Jharkhand and Wayanad

Polling begins for Jharkhand's assembly elections, Kerala's Wayanad seat, and bypolls in 31 assembly seats across 10 states. Key figures including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and former Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren are in the contest. Crucial security arrangements are in place as voters head to the polls.

Polling activities for the first phase of Jharkhand's assembly elections, alongside the Wayanad parliamentary seat in Kerala and bypolls in 31 assembly seats across 10 states, are set to commence on Wednesday morning. The BJP-led NDA in Jharkhand is looking to displace the ruling JMM coalition, featuring critical candidates such as ex-Chief Minister Champai Soren and Congress leader Ajoy Kumar.

Making a significant debut, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is contending for the Wayanad seat, a bastion historically held by her brother, Rahul Gandhi. The latter chose to uphold Raebareli in the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year. In a collaborative effort, Rahul is campaigning for Priyanka as she faces off against LDF's Satyan Mokeri and BJP's Navya Haridas. Concurrently, the Chelakkara Assembly seat in Thrissur district is also gearing up for elections.

Jharkhand's polls will unfold over two phases on November 13 and 20, covering forty-three electoral segments initially. With robust security measures deployed, the polling window opens at 7 am, concluding by 5 pm, except at 950 sensitive booths constrained to a 4 pm closure. The Ranchi Assembly constituency's Returning Officer, Utkarsh Kumar, assured compliance with Electoral Commission stipulations, noting the start of mock polls at 5:30 am.

(With inputs from agencies.)