The BJP, which has moved the Supreme Court demanding dissolution of the Assembly and early elections in Jharkhand, fielded party president Rajnath Singh (in picture with state chief Raghubar Das) on Monday to take on the Congress at a rally in Godda, a JMM bastion. (Prashant Mitra)

Ranchi, Oct. 19: The Centre has told the Supreme Court that Assembly elections in Jharkhand would be notified within three weeks, indicating that the wait for an elected government in the state would probably end around Christmas.

Attorney-general Goolam Vahanvati’s assurance, made to a bench headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan that was hearing a petition filed by state BJP spokesman Sanjay Seth seeking dissolution of the Assembly and early elections in the state, implied that the Election Commission would be issuing a notification by November 8.

This meant, elections could be held sometime in the middle of December, roughly after 45 days, so that an elected government was in place before the year-end festive season.

With the Assembly kept in suspended animation, Jharkhand has been under President’s rule since January 19 after the Shibu Soren government ran into a crisis following his defeat in the Tamar byelection.

When BJP counsel Ajit Sinha argued that the EC would come into the picture only when the Assembly was dissolved, Vahanvati argued it was an internal matter and that the EC had already been sounded out on holding elections.

“I have got instructions from the commission, too,” Sinha quoted the AG as telling the court, which however, kept the petition pending on the BJP counsel’s request and fixed another hearing two weeks later.

According to Sinha, the apex court was intent on monitoring the issue till the end. “We expect elections to be declared much earlier than the November 8 deadline as the attorney-general appeared very positive,” he added.

Political sources in New Delhi said Governor K. Sankaranarayanan would dissolve the Assembly in a day or two. And elections would most probably be held from December 15 to 20, they said, quoting deliberations between the home secretary and EC officials, some of whom were locked in discussions about preparedness with the Jharkhand administration over video conferencing today.

All deputy commissioners (DCs), superintendents of police (SPs), besides senior administrative and police officials were present in Ranchi during the EC review of the state’s law and order scenario.

Deputy chief election commissioner Alok Shukla, along with state chief electoral officer Debashish Gupta, who had left for New Delhi yesterday, reviewed the law and order scenario with state officials through video-conferencing.

Joint chief electoral officer Ashok Kumar Sinha, who was also present, said the meet was aimed at analysing the law and order scenario before holding elections.