Polling for the Lok Sabha elections 2019 was held in the State Capital on May 6. While Ranchiites only got out in the sweltering heat to exercise their voting rights, candidates of the two leading political parties- Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) and Congress from Ranchi were busy chalking out plans for campaigning for the remaining two phases.
With rallies and meetings scheduled in Chaibasa, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad and Godda for the next few days, the Congress candidate from Ranchi Subodh Kant Sahay feels that the time to relax will come only after the elections come to an end on May 19. “The word relax does not exist in my dictionary. I was in Chaibasa for Rahul Gandhi’s rally and now I am on my way to Jamshedpur. Even though the elections are over in Ranchi, there are still a lot of places to be covered in Jharkhand for the sixth and seventh phase.”
“As long as we were campaigning in Ranchi, I was still able to spend some quality time with my family. However, now that I have to travel to other parts of the State for canvassing, my family has gone back to their normal schedules,” Sahay further added.
On the other hand Neeta Seth who has been canvassing in the far flung areas around the State capital for her husband and BJP candidate from Ranchi Sanjay Seth is looking forward to spend some time with her near and dear ones.
“I am feeling very relaxed now that the elections are over in Ranchi. Now I want to look after my house and spend some my daughter and son in- law. With the rising temperatures, I would carry a lot of liquids like buttermilk, nimbu paani, and coconut water and some fruits and dry snacks with me. I would generally have lunch with the workers wherever I was campaigning. My husband is still busy as elections in other parts of the state are not yet over.”
“Arjun Munda is a very down to earth person and the star campaigner of the party in the State. After the elections in Khunti on May 6, he is now travelling to other parts Jharkhand campaigning for the last two phases of the elections. He will continue to do so till May 19 and only post that will he take a break,” said a close aide of Munda, the BJP candidate from Khunti.
Addressing rallies of thousands of people and conducting meetings with the party workers, these leaders have been surviving the heat with seasonal fruits, food rich in fiber like oats and high liquid intake like buttermilk and coconut water.
“Munda ji would barely sleep for 3 to 4 hours a day. He spends a lot of time with the party workers and even has his meals with them. His lunch would mostly comprise of roti- sabzi or daal- chawal. He generally does not like to carry anything with him,” he further added.