The Opposition BJP wrested power from the Congress in Rajasthan on Sunday by obtaining a clear majority and emerging as the single largest party past the halfway mark in the closely fought Assembly election. The BJP won 115 of the 199 seats contested while the Congress was at a distant second with 69 seats.
The desert State has maintained its tradition of voting out the incumbent government during the last three decades in the election results. The BJP’s victory also came as a setback to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who was expecting to beat the anti-incumbency trend with his welfare schemes, social security measures, and seven guarantees promised to the electorate.
The results depicted an influence of the BJP’s identity politics on the voters as well as the acceptance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “guarantee of delivering on guarantees” during a series of rallies he addressed in the State during the election campaign. The BJP has been pitching Mr. Modi’s promises as a counter to the Congress’s plank of schemes for beneficiaries.
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Other issues raised by the BJP, such as crimes against women and Dalits, rampant corruption in government departments, paper leaks in government recruitment exams, and appeasement made an impact in the constituencies where the polling percentage was recorded high.
Mr. Gehlot went to Raj Bhavan here in the evening to submit his resignation to Governor Kalraj Mishra. Pradesh Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra said the first meeting of Congress Legislature Party would be convened in Jaipur on December 5 with the participation of the newly elected MLAs.
Assembly Speaker C.P. Joshi was among several senior Congress leaders who faced defeat in the polls. Mr. Joshi lost the Nathdwara seat to BJP’s Vishvaraj Singh Mewar by 7,504 votes. Ministers B.D. Kalla, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, Parsadi Lal Meena, and Mamta Bhupesh also lost to their BJP rivals.
In the BJP, the prominent leaders who lost included Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore (Taranagar), former State unit president Satish Poonia (Amber) and former MP Jyoti Mirdha (Nagaur), who had recently joined the party. Polling was held in 199 of the 200 Assembly seats, as the election in Sriganganagar’s Karanpur was postponed following the Congress candidate’s death.
Senior BJP leader and former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje arrived at the party’s State headquarters here to a tumultuous welcome after winning her Jhalrapatan seat. Ms. Raje said the people of the State had rejected the “misgovernance of Congress” and reposed faith in Mr. Modi’s promise for inclusive growth. She said the people had also given a chance to the BJP to serve them in 2024.
In his reaction, Mr. Gehlot told presspersons outside his residence that the election result was “shocking” as the Congress government’s flagship schemes were being talked about all over the country. He said the party would analyse the reasons for its defeat in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.
Mr. Gehlot separately posted a message on X asking the new government to continue the pace of development given by Congress to the State during the last five years, and take forward schemes such as the Chiranjeevi health insurance scheme, and the Old Pension Scheme for government employees.
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Amid celebrations in the BJP camp, all eyes were on the selection of the Chief Minister as the party had decided not to project anyone for the top post during the election campaign. With Ms. Raje’s supporters planning to raise the demand for her appointment to the post, several other names, including those of Diya Kumari, Mahant Balaknath, and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, were doing rounds.
Among the smaller parties, the Bharat Adivasi Party won three seats, Rahstriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) won two, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won two, and Congress’ ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won one seat. Seven independent candidates also emerged victorious.
