The Income Tax department has conducted raids in the residence of Sunil Srivastava, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren's personal secretary. The development comes a few days prior to the assembly polls. The raids, which began earlier in the day are currently underway.

The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which is in an alliance with Congress, RJD, and left parties, is facing strong competition from the BJP-led NDA alliance in the state. Raids are being carried out at 9 locations, including Ranchi and Jamshedpur, according to news agency ANI. In June, the Jharkhand High Court granted bail to Hemant Soren, the leader of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, in connection with an alleged land scam case.

On January 31, 2024, the ED arrested CM Hemant Soren after questioning him for more than seven hours. Later on, he went to the Raj Bhavan and resigned from his position as Chief Minister. The case involves the forging of land documents for 8.86 acres in the Badgai area of Ranchi. The Jharkhand Assembly, which has 81 members, will hold elections in two phases: November 13 and 20. The results will be counted on November 23.

In total, 2.6 crore voters are eligible to vote, including 1.31 crore men, 1.29 crore women, 11.84 lakh first-time voters, and 66.84 lakh young voters. In the 2020 Assembly elections, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) won 30 seats, the BJP won 25, and the Congress secured 16. In 2014, the BJP won 37 seats, JMM won 19, and Congress won only 6. Recently, Hemant Soren criticized the BJP, calling their claims about "Roti, Beti, and Mati" empty promises. He claimed that his government has put in place a number of welfare programs to protect women, especially daughters.

"We have launched schemes like the Savitribai Phule Jhano Yojana for the safety of our daughters, with 12 lakh students linked to it," said Soren while speaking at a public gathering in support of his cabinet colleague and current JMM MLA Ramdas Soren at Gandhnia Hat Maidan in Ghatsila.