Hemant Soren terms Jharkhand poll result as milestone, thanks voters for mandate

With the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) alliance looking all set to form government in Jharkhand, JMM leader Hemant Soren on Monday thanked the voters for the mandate given to the alliance and said that this win marks a milestone in the state's history.

"The trends of the election results suggest that the voters of Jharkhand have given a clear mandate for which I am very thankful to the voters," said Soren at a press conference here.

"I am thankful to the people of Jharkhand for the mandate. Today's victory is full of happiness for many but for me, it is also the day to take a vow to fulfil the expectations of the public," added Soren.

Dedicating the victory to his father and former Jharkhand chief minister Shibu Soren, the JMM leader also thanked the chiefs of Congress and RJD along with other leaders for their support in wresting power from the BJP.

"This win is the result of the hard work and struggle of 'Dishom Guru' Shibu Soren. The time has come to fulfil the goals for which this state was created. I want to thank Lalu ji, Sonia ji, Rahul ji and Priyanka ji and all Congress leaders for all the support and for believing in me," he said.

"This marks a new chapter in the history of Jharkhand and this chapter will be a milestone for the state. I assure the people that their expectations will be met regardless of their class or section of the society they belong to," he said.

Talking about the future course of action, he said: "We will very soon hold a meeting with our coalition partners to decide what needs to be done next."

As per the trends on the website of Election Commission till 5 pm, the Congress-JMM-RJD alliance is leading on 44 seats, which is three more than the majority mark needed to form the government in the state.

Hemant Soren's party JMM is emerging as the single largest party by leading on 29 seats. Congress and RJD are leading on 14 and one seats respectively. BJP, on the other hand, has won two seats and is leading on 25 others in the 81-member Assembly.