In Rajasthan local body polls, a shot in the arm for BJP | Political Pulse News
Halfway through its tenure in Rajasthan, the ruling BJP has received a major shot in the arm and is set to form boards in most of the urban local bodies, counting trends show.
The results come at a time when the state government has been under criticism over several issues. Just a few weeks ago, the perception was that the BJP government had been delaying local body polls because it feared a defeat. The opposition Congress, citing the High Court’s repeated criticism of the government for the delay, had been sending the message that the government, now led by a first-time MLA, Bhajan Lal Sharma, was not up to the task.
The local body polls, however, have brought relief for the ruling party. By Monday afternoon, the BJP was leading in the majority of the urban local bodies.
A total of 309 urban local bodies – 10 Nagar Nigam (Municipal Corporation), 47 Municipal Councils (Nagar Parishad) and 252 Nagar Palika (Municipality) went to polls in two phases on September 9 and 11.
As per the latest trends, the BJP is ahead in at least 6 municipal corporations, 21 municipal councils and 110 municipalities. The Congress leads in Ajmer, Bikaner and Pali municipal corporations, 16 municipal councils and 95 municipalities.
Independents hold the key in Jodhpur, Pali, Bharatpur, Ajmer, Alwar and Bikaner municipal corporations.
In Jodhpur, BJP leads in 46 wards, the Congress in 43 and Independents in 11. Similarly, while BJP leads in 28 wards of Alwar and Congress in 23, Independents are leading in 14.
In Pali, the home turf of BJP state president Madan Rathore, the Congress has won 29 as opposed to BJP’s 21; both parties still need Independents to touch the majority mark; as of Monday afternoon, 15 Independents are leading in Pali. In Bharatpur municipal corporation too – the home turf of CM Sharma, Independents won 38 wards, against 20 of BJP and 7 of the Congress.
In Ajmer, while Congress leads in 37 of 80 wards, BJP trails in 32; here too, Independents held the key and are leading in 11 wards. Similarly, in Bikaner, the Congress leads in 35 wards, BJP in 21 and Independents in 8.
In Jhalawar municipal council, the home turf of former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, the Congress leads in nearly 30 of the 45 wards, and BJP in 13.
These results are good news for Chief Minister Sharma and state party chief Rathore, both of whom have drawn criticism from various quarters in recent months. The two will be credited for the win: Rathore for his organisational skills and Sharma for his active role in the campaign.
The NEET paper leak expose in Rajasthan earlier this year had undone the BJP’s carefully crafted image that there were no paper leaks in Rajasthan under the party’s rule. More recently, protests by Karni Sena and other upper-caste outfits demanding a rollback of UGC regulations, and linking it to local body polls, came a cropper. Then, the protests for protection of the Khejri tree, law and order, and, more recently, by the Cockroach Janta Party over the poor condition of schools in Rajasthan seem to have had limited impact on the polls at best.
As per past trends, local body polls generally go in favour of the ruling party because a local councillor is expected to find it easier to secure funds for his/her ward; in a recent rally, the BJP state chief had said voting for a BJP candidate would mean that Chief Minister Sharma would give them funds, but that he may have second thoughts if it was a Congress councillor.
Political analyst Tribhuvan said that as per past trends, people generally vote for the ruling party in urban local body polls and the BJP has had a stronger presence in urban areas, and the Congress is known to perform better in rural areas. “But recent reports had indicated that BJP was set to suffer a major loss in these polls. However, it managed to overcome this on the back of its organisational expertise.”
“BJP prepared well for these polls, something which wasn’t seen in the Congress party. Congress is also divided into 3-4 factions. And on the ground, there are factions within these factions. And unlike the BJP, Congress had no rally or meeting where all leaders shared a stage,” he said.
“Moreover, the Congress party’s state in charge (Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa) has been absent as there are polls in Punjab. The results certainly make the Congress look bad and should be a major concern for the party ahead of the 2028 Assembly polls,” he said.
The Congress, despite its scattered victories, has an uphill task as it will have to rely on independents in several places if it wants to form boards. With councillors generally keen to back the ruling dispensation, the Congress may have to outdo BJP’s organisational skills to have a shot.
