It’s A Saffron Wave In Rajasthan

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        Gehlot Vs. Raje old guards fight it out

The Rajasthan electorate beat its record turnout of 64% in 2014 Lok Sabha Elections to record a 68.16% voter turnout in the 4th Phase (1st Phase in Rajasthan) of voting. With temperatures soaring as high as 43 degrees Barmer (73.14%), Jhalawar-Baran (71.77%), Banswara (72.59) and Chittorgarh (72.31%) recorded the highest polling percentages. 

IN THE NAME OF LEGACY

This election a battle of legacies ensues as Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Former Chief Minister Raje field their sons from their home turfs. While Congress’ Vaibhav Gehlot is in for a tough fight against BJP’s Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in Jodhpur – the Jhalawar-Baran seat is a done deal for three time Member of Parliament Dushyant Singh who faces former ABVP President Pramod Sharma. Raje previously contested this Lok Sabha seat and won five times. 

FAMILY TIES 

Raje’s ties to the Hadoti region are 30 years-old and transcend beyond party lines. Similar to Gehlot’s popularity garnering votes for his son in Jodhpur, Raje’s relationship with the people of Jhalawar-Baran has been an added advantage to Dushyant Singh in the area. However, if the 2019 Lok Sabha voter turnout is anything to go by Singh seems to have picked up a following of his own. 

CONGRESS SLACKING AFTER BIG WINS

In Rajasthan the party that emerges victorious in Assembly Elections also garners the maximum seats in the General Elections. However, on closer analysis the latest polling percentages produce an interesting shift in this voting pattern. 

In December 2018 Dr. Prabhulal Saini, Minister of Agriculture & Animal Husbandry in the Vasundhara Government, lost by over 30,000 votes to Pramod Jain Bhaya in Anta. Congress in the Jhalawar-Baran region has been banking on Pramod Jain Bhaya to reclaim the Jhalawar-Baran seat, for which he was also given the Cabinet berth and the Mining portfolio in mineral rich Rajasthan. But on Monday, Anta, which is the Assembly constituency of Bhaya, recorded the lowest polling percentage in this Lok Sabha Constituency. Growing discontent with the Gehlot government and poor choice of candidate have allegedly kept their core voters at bay, “for Bhaya to not enter into battle when most needed did more harm than good. He should have actively fought to empower Congress in the Baran-Jhalawar region,” says a senior Congress leader on condition of anonymity.

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