Contacting Independents a natural process: Gehlot on post-poll prospects in Rajasthan

Jaipur: A day after the state elections, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot appeared confident of a Congress win and said that being in touch with winning Independents happens on its own and is a natural process.

Answering reporters at the airport, Gehlot, on a question about contacting Independent candidates who are in winning positions, said, “Parties are not going to tell you even if they are already contacting Independents who are in a winning position. It is a natural process and contact happens on its own, kind of routine. There is no need to talk about this. However, Congress is going to win and win with a comfortable margin. All the schemes, guarantees have been liked by the people.”

Rajasthan this time recorded one of the highest-ever voter turnouts at 75.45 per cent, according to Election Commission data. The female voters recorded a voting percentage of 74.72 per cent, a tad higher than the voting percentage of men which stood at 74.53 per cent. This is said to be one of the highest voting percentages recorded since 71 years of Independence and in the 16 Assembly elections held so far.

Although Rajasthan has been changing the incumbent government every five years, Independents and smaller parties have often held the key to government formation, especially whenever Congress has come into power, after failing to get a decisive victory. BJP, on the other hand, has come into power on its own, not having to reach out to Independents and smaller parties.

In 2008, Congress came into power with 96 seats and a vote share of 36.8 per cent. Independents that time had a vote share of 15 per cent. Then Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLAs had joined Congress and helped the government survive. After the 2018 Assembly elections when Congress formed the government with 99 seats initially, again six BSP MLAs joined the party and strengthened it. In 2018, 13 Independents won and had a vote share of 9.6 per cent.

During the 2020 political crisis, when Gehlot had to face a rebellion by his deputy Sachin Pilot and 18 of his MLAs, at least 10 Independent MLAs out of the 13 helped his government survive. At least five of these Independent MLAs—namely Laxman Meena, Babulal Nagar, Khushveer Singh, Sanyam Lodha and Omprakash Hudla—got tickets from the Congress this time.

Some BJP rebels, after being refused tickets, are contesting as Independents too. Yunus Khan, a confidante of Vasundhara Raje, was denied a ticket from Deedwana. He was made to fight against Sachin Pilot from Tonk in 2018. He lost and the loss was almost a forgone conclusion then. But after he was denied a ticket from his traditional seat Deedwana, Khan decided to go it alone this election.

In Chittorgarh, sitting BJP MLA Chandramohan Aakya, who was denied a ticket to accommodate BJP MLA Narpat Singh Rajvi, son-in-law of late Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, is contesting as an Independent.

In Shahpura, another Raje loyalist, 89-year-old Kailash Meghwal, is also contesting as an Independent. He was suspended from the saffron party after he alleged corruption charges against Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.

These Independents, who are miffed with the BJP, may hold the key if no party gets a majority this time.