Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has claimed the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) election results as an endorsement of the Vasundhara Raje government in the State, the Congress has said the outcome had, once again, proven that Congress’ base in the rural regions continued to be strong.
Though Panchayati Raj elections are not fought on political party lines, but most candidates are supported by political parties or are affiliated to them making it a hugely political affair.
Of the 33 Zila Pramukh’s to be elected, the Congress has managed 12 though it had a majority in only 9 Zila Parishads. Three others it managed to win because of cross-voting or support from independents. The BJP has only 21 Zila Pramukhs though it won 23 Zila Parishads.
Barring a couple of places, Congress has managed to record a decent victory number of wards, even if it has not won the Panchayar Samiti or Zila Parishad, according to Rajasthan Pradesh Congress chief Sachin Pilot. Congress has managed to win all five Panchayat Samitis in Dholpur which is Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje’s home district as also in Hadauti where it has won both Panchayat Samitis and Zila Parishad elections. Hadauti has traditionally been a BJP stranglehold.
In Baran, the Congress has won 6 of 7 Panchayat Samitis while Alwar, Nagaur, and Jhunjhunu managed to elect Congress Zila Pramukhs.
On its part, the BJP is claiming that winning PRI elections has proven that the party is not just an urban party as was being claimed, but has managed to make inroads into rural belts as well.
Crediting the party workers for the success in the elections, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said it was clear that the people of the State had approved ‘good governance’ being provided by the BJP.
