Brij Bhardwaj
All eyes are now on Rajasthan Assembly poll as polling in Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh is over. The contest in Rajasthan is of great interest as it is one state where the ruling party is changed every five years. Present Chief Minister Ashok Ghelot and Vasundhra Raje of BJP have been elected as Chief Ministers for last two decades after every five years. This time Gehlot remains in contest but Vasundhra Raje has not been projected as Chief Minister face by BJP.
Yet another interesting fact in the contest is that while BJP is seeking to consolidate Hindu votes by accusing Congress Government of following a policy of appeasement towards minority community, Congress party on the other hand is talking of caste census and appealing to voters in the name of consolidation of backward classes. The result of this contest will have implications beyond Assembly poll, as this may become a feature of Lok Sabha polls in 2024.
BJP is also talking of poor record of Congress Government in maintaining law and order and atrocities on women. The leakage of papers in tests, and murder of Kanhaiya Lal are other issues which are being highlighted by the BJP. All big guns of BJP including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah are actively campaigning in the State. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is also addressing many public meetings.
The Congress party campaign is led by Chief Minister Gehlot with the help of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. Mr Gehlot in his campaign speaks of welfare schemes like, free medical treatment, mobile phones for women and promise of allowance for unemployed and women, and revival of old pension scheme for Government employees.
BJP has tried to match the social welfare schemes offered by Congress Government and in addition spoken about free trips to Ayodhya and other religious places. The contest is a close one. BJP is hopeful of victory as it is felt that Rajasthan voters will not change its decade old record of changing ruling party every five years. BJP also points out that top Congress leaders Chief Minister and his deputy Sachin Pilot spent four years fighting each other instead of providing good governance.
It can be granted that what looked like no contest in Rajasthan few months back has become a close contest now with BJP enjoying an edge. But BJP is taking no chances and is campaigning hard. It has also brought in many members of Lok Sabha and Ministers in Central Government to fight on Assembly seats. The Rajasthan elections will also give an indication if opposition parties support caste census and appeal for voting on caste basis has any takers and how far it can match BJP efforts to consolidate the Hindu vote bank.
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