With the completion of the mayoral elections in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Kota, the overall picture across Rajasthan’s 10 municipal corporations has become clear. The BJP has secured the mayoral post in nine of the 10 corporations, while the Congress has managed to win the mayor’s seat in only one-Bikaner. Across local bodies as a whole, including municipal councils and municipalities, the BJP has formed boards in 204 bodies, compared with 96 for the Congress.
As soon as the results of the councillor elections were declared, both the Congress and the BJP began manoeuvring to form boards. The opposition also levelled allegations of councillor abductions and horse-trading in several areas. In protest, the party boycotted the subsequent deputy mayor election. The mayoral election in the Pali Municipal Corporation delivered another setback to the Congress. Meanwhile, the election for the Municipal Council chairperson in Mundwa, in Nagaur district, produced perhaps the most striking example of cross-voting. Overall, the BJP has performed better across the state compared with the previous elections. Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma actively campaigned through roadshows during the civic polls, while the party entered the contest with detailed organisational planning. Former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot took a veiled dig at State Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra, suggesting that the results might have been different had the Congress also held roadshows. The party also needs to examine why votes went to independent candidates instead of Congress nominees, he stated. The BJP has now geared up for the Panchayati Raj elections, with National President Nitin Nabin issuing instructions to party leaders.
A fierce tussle followed the announcement of the results on September 14, with both parties resorting to sequestering their councillors to prevent poaching. In the Kota Municipal Corporation election held on Friday, the Congress had 39 councillors but received only 35 votes. Despite winning 29 of the 65 wards, the party failed to secure the mayor’s post. Congress candidate Sumitra Jain received only three votes, while rebel candidate Rajbala Hingad secured 29. Amid the internal rebellion, the BJP’s Namita Bubakia won the mayoral election with 33 votes. The Mundwa municipality has 25 wards, of which the BJP won 10, the Congress three, the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) seven and independents five.
