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Hemant Soren – JMM's only bet in Jharkhand

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has a tough task at hand in the upcoming assembly elections in Jharkhand.

On one hand he has to ensure that his government's achievements are highlighted effectively and on the other he has to ensure that his party, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha doesn’t lose focus in the big battle against the BJP.

The JMM is banking heavily on his appeal, especially among the tribal masses, who form a big chuck of the state's electorate.

The challenge gets amplified further as the JMM is fighting the election without an alliance with the Congress.

Son of JMM founder, Shibu Soren, Hemant took over as CM just 14 months back, too little a time to make a decisive impact, hence the worry in the party.

The JMM hopes to cash in on his image of being a transparent leader, who put a great deal of emphasis on development work in the state during his tenure as CM.

While JMM will be contesting all the 81 Assembly seats, its primary focus would be to ensure that it maintains its hold in the Santhal Pargana region, which has 18 Assembly seats.

Senior leaders of the party are being fielded from the area.

Hemant became active in the party after the death of his brother Durga in 2009. He was pushed to the centre stage after allegations of corruption were levelled against Shibu Soren. Hemant was the party's solution in its attempt to transform its image and regain public trust.

Hemant was elected as MLA in 2009 from Dumka. He has also been a Rajya Sabha member from June 24, 2009 till January 4, 2010. He had also served as the deputy chief minister under BJP's Arjun Munda when both parties were in coalition.

The Assembly elections in the state will be held between November 25 and December 20 in five phases on 81 seats.