BJP improves tally in Marwar and Jaipur, retains hold in Mewar belt
The BJP’s vote share went up to 41.9% as compared to 38.77% in 2018. The Congress vote share went up marginally to 39.3% from 39.30% in 2018
The BJP did well in the Marwar, Mewar, eastern Rajasthan and Hadoti regions while its performance was below par in Shekhawati and north Rajasthan, election results showed on Sunday. The party has traditionally been strong in the Hadoti and Mewar regions, Ajmer and Bikaner while in Marwar, Shekhawati and eastern Rajasthan its performance has been sporadic.
The BJP’s vote share went up to 41.9% as compared to 38.77% in 2018. The Congress vote share went up marginally to 39.3% from 39.30% in 2018.
Leaders from the BJP and the Congress said the wrong selection of candidates and failing to get the caste equation right were the main reasons for not doing well in certain areas.
In 2018, the Congress had swept eastern Rajasthan with the Meenas and Gurjars voting for the party. While Meenas have traditionally been Congress supporters, Gurjars went with the Congress in the hope that community leader Sachin Pilot would be made CM.
However, Gehlot was made chief minister and that upset the Gurjars. It was expected that the Gurjar vote would shift to the BJP and that has reflected in the results. The BJP, which was almost wiped out in eastern Rajasthan in 2018, winning just one seat in the Bharatpur, Karauli, Sawai Madhopur and Dholpur districts, improved its tally to 19 seats in the region this time.
ALSO READ- Assembly election results: How BJP’s gambit paid off in Rajasthan
The party managed to get Gurjar community votes and also those of the the SC and Meena communities, which are present in large numbers in eastern Rajasthan.
However, BJP spokesperson Laxmikant Bhardwaj said the party did not get one-sided Gurjar vote like the Congress had got in 2018.
“Where candidates seen as being close to Sachin Pilot were contesting, the Gurjars voted for them. On other seats, they voted for the BJP. So the vote was split between Pilot candidates and the BJP,” he said.
In the Jaipur region too, the BJP improved its tally from six in 2018 to 12 this time. The BJP also swept Bikaner district, winning all seven seats.
Congress spokesperson Swarnim Chaturvedi said anti-incumbency against MLAs had resulted in the defeat. “31 MLAs and 17 minsters lost. Fresh faces should have been brought in on many seats,” he said.
He conceded that the Gurjar and SC vote had gone more in favour of the BJP.
However, the Congress has got a good share of the Jat vote, which is reflected in its performance in Hanumangarh and Ganganagar districts and the Shekhawati belt.
In Marwar region, the BJP performed well mainly due to anti-incumbency against the sitting MLAs and ministers. Bhardwaj said there was an undercurrent against the Congress MLAs and that resulted in ministers and MLAs losing with big margins on most seats.
The BJP retained its traditional hold in the Hadoti region comprising Kota, Bundi, Jhalawar and Baran districts. The Congress did well in Bundi, winning all four seats. But in other areas, the BJP did better.
In the Mewar belt, the BJP has once again retained its hold. The BJP won 18 seats, the Congress seven and the Bharatiya Adivasi Party won three seats in the Mewar region. In 2018, the BJP won one seat, the Congress won ten and others won three.
BJP leader Mukesh Dadhich said the party’s selection of candidates and social engineering were done meticulously, which resulted in the win.
Also read- Husband vs wife, uncles vs nieces contests in 4 seats in Raj. How they fared
Political analyst Mithilesh Jaimini said the BJP got a majority of votes from not only the Brahmins, Rajputs and Banias but other communities as well.
“The Gurjar vote was split between the BJP and Sachin Pilot-backed candidates. The Jats voted on the basis of the candidates so the vote was split between the BJP and the Congress. But the BJP managed to take a good share of the Meena votes largely due to the influence of BJP leader Kirori Meena. The SC vote too has gone with the BJP in many areas,” he said.
He said the Congress failed to shift the Mali vote from the BJP. “They had expected the Malis would largely go with the Congress but that did not happen,” he said.
Recommended Topics