The Opposition alliance is clearly a slow starter in sourcing campaign paraphernalia to begin canvassing unlike the BJP, much like a corporate entity, was the first to set up shop at its party headquarters here, replete with badges, flags and Modi masks.

The Congress, heading the Mahagathbandhan, is contesting seven of 14 Lok Sabha seats of Jharkhand and its first consignment of election material has already arrived.

The JMM, which is contesting four seats, is dispatching flags and banners in phases, using resources carefully. It is relying primarily on old-style campaigning, preferring public meetings by its executive president Hemant Soren, who started touring way ahead of the others from January-February.

Babulal Marandi’s JVM, which is contesting two seats, is also limited on resources, depending mostly on judicious use of limited quantities of campaign gear.

Congress spokesperson Kishore Nath Shahdeo said their materials were being sent by the party headquarters in Delhi.

“Things like flags, banners, leaflets and caps have come in. We have opened a shop at our Ranchi party office at Shradhanand Road from where workers and candidates can buy what they need. Besides, we will also supply campaign material to our candidates,” he said.

The party, Shahdeo claimed, had designed campaign materials targeted at specific sections of society. “We have pamphlets meant for tribals, youths, farmers, unemployed youths and those below the poverty line. Each pamphlet explains what our party has promised them,” he said, adding that the Congress was in the process of seeking permission of returning officers to put up banners and hoardings at public places.

But audio-visual campaign material is yet to reach Ranchi and party men said they had no idea as yet on rolling out high-tech campaign vehicles.

Also, it is still unclear whether alliance partners would come up with any common campaign material.

Congress poll materials on sale at its office in Ranchi on Monday. Picture by Manob Chowdhary

“This proposal is being discussed but it has not materialised. Ideally, people should know that the Congress, JMM, JVM and RJD are part of the Opposition alliance. So far, there has been no meeting to coordinate campaigning,” said a senior Congress leader.

The JMM said it was procuring campaign material, including audio-visual inputs, in phases.

“We are not a corporate party like the BJP. We believe in ground work and mass contact. Other than flags, caps and banners we are in the process of publishing pamphlets. We are procuring these from local shops. The highlight of our message is on how BJP governments in the state and Centre had cheated tribals of Jharkhand,” said party spokesperson and central general secretary Vinod Pandey.

The JVM has started sending campaigning material to Koderma and Godda, the two seats that party president Babulal Marandi and Pradeep Yadav are contesting respectively.

“We are a cash-strapped party. We can hardly afford lavish expenditure on campaign material. Our materials include flags, banners and some printed literature. But Pradeep Yadav has designed some material highlighting how land was on forcefully acquired in Godda for the Adani power project,” said a JVM leader

The RJD, which is contesting from Chatra and Palamau, has already got its stuff from Bihar. Apart form the usual, it has promised to release music CDs to spread the message of the party.

“Our target is to fix flags atop houses of every RJD worker in the two constituencies. Hoardings and banners will also display pictures of senior party leaders like Lalu Prasad, Tejashwi and Jharkhand RJD president Gautam Sagar Rana. We have hired local Nagpuri and Bhojpuri singers too,” said general secretary for Jharkhand Kailash Yadav.

Nominations

BJP's Chatra candidate Sunil Singh and Congress’s Lohardaga candidate Sukhdeo Bhagat are likely to file their nomination papers on Tuesday. Sources said the Congress was planning to put up a show of unity with state party president Ajoy Kumar, legislature party leader Alamgir Alam and Rajya Sabha member Dhiraj Prasad Sahu accompanying Bhagat to Lohardaga.