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Rajasthan CM Raje prevails in fight for minister, it is Yunus Khan vs Pilot in Tonk
Yunus Khan’s name figured in the fifth and final list of candidates for Rajasthan assembly elections released by the BJP. He is a minister in the Vasundhara Raje cabinet.
The BJP on Monday nominated cabinet minister Yunus Khan to contest from Tonk against Congress state chief Sachin Pilot, making it one of the most hotly contested seats in the Rajasthan assembly elections.
The other keenly watched contest would be between Congress candidate Manvendra Singh and chief minister Vasundhara Raje in Jhalrapatan.
Khan’s name figured in the fifth and final list of eight candidates that was released by the BJP on the last day for filing of nominations. The BJP said holding back Khan’s name was part of their strategy as they knew Pilot would change his seat. The BJP decided to rework its strategy after Congress fielded Manvendra against Raje.
BJP election management committee convener Gajendra Singh Shekhawat called Khan’s candidature from Tonk a master stroke. “Fielding Khan from Tonk is our master stroke. We expected Pilot to change his seat. We knew he would go to his in-laws place to contest because he was scared of losing from his home, Ajmer. That’s why we had been holding back Khan’s name for so long,” Shekhawat told reporters.
The Deedwana MLA is the only Muslim face in the list of 200 candidates fielded by the BJP for the December 7 polls.
Khan’s candidature signified a victory for Raje who had been advocating his name in face of opposition by the RSS. BJP leaders familiar with the development said Raje fought till the end to save PWD minister Khan, seen as her trusted confidant. She said dropping Khan would give a negative message among people but that didn’t cut much ice with the RSS.
Eventually when the Congress fielded Pilot from Tonk, Raje convinced the high command to field Khan who could give a tough fight to Pilot on a Muslim-dominated seat
Khan said he wanted to contest from Deedwana but the party leaders felt he could give a tough fight to Pilot from Tonk which is a Muslim-majority constituency.
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Khan and Pilot filed their nominations
Pilot offered prayers at Moti Dungari temple in Jaipur before leaving for Tonk where he carried out a 5-km-long roadshow to the retuning officer’s office .
“People want to get rid of the BJP government for its misrule. On 7th December when the opportunity will come people will vent out their frustration against the Vasundhara Raje government,” Pilot told the media.
He said the BJP had changed its strategy to not give representation to Muslims at the last moment to play the communal card. “BJP deviated from its stand and fielded Yunus Khan at the eleventh hour only to divide Tonk on communal lines,” he said. “People are mature and will not fall into BJP’s trap.”
Khan reached the RO’s office with a few hundred BJP supporters. According to locals, BJP supporters in Tonk were unhappy with cancellation of Ajit Mehta’s candidature.
Khan said fight in Tonk was between a ‘sewak and a swami’. “I am a sewak of my party, they decided that I shall fight from here. Pilot who was distributing Congress tickets decided the Tonk seat for himself.” He said BJP workers and people of Tonk would fight on his behalf. “The people of Tonk will win and they will defeat Pilot.”
Khan said, “Pilot’s plane (victory) will not land in Tonk as there is no airport in Tonk. He has left the airport behind in Ajmer.”
The BJP laboured late into the night over names for eight seats.
The seats -- Deedwana, Kekri, Kotputli, Karauli, Khinvsar and Behror -- were stuck due to differences of opinion between the state leadership and party high command over the names. Candidates on Tonk and Kherwada were changed. In Kherwada, Shankarlal Kharadi was replaced by sitting MLA Nanalal Ahari who was earlier dropped.
The party fielded minister Jaswant Yadav’s son Mohit from Behror, Jitendra Singh Jodha from Deedwana, retired IAS officer OP Saini, who took VRS to contest the polls, from Karauli, Rajendra Vinayak from Kekri, Mukesh Goyal from Kotputli and Ramchandra Utta from Khinvsar.
From LIC officer to minister
Khan hails from Ganedi village in Sikar district where he grew up and did his schooling. He did his postgraduation from Deedwana and then joined LIC as a development officer and moved to Jaipur.
He is a Kayamkhani Muslim or those Rajputs who converted to Islam.
Khan came in touch with Ramzan Khan, a minister in former chief minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat’s government in the 80s.
Shekhawat was at the time looking for Kayamkhani Muslim candidates to be fielded from Deedwana and Ladnu areas which are dominated by Muslims.
Ramzan Khan suggested that Yunus be fielded and Shekhawat gave him a chance in the 1998 election which he fought and lost.
He then won the 2003 polls from Deedwana and was a junior minister in the Raje government.
He also found a mentor in BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain who often came to pray at the Ajmer Dargah. Hussain is also considered close to Raje. Through him, Khan came close to Raje.
He lost in 2008 but won again in 2013 and held the portfolios of transport and minister, becoming virtually the number two in the Raje cabinet.
