Dholpur assembly bypoll: BJP, Cong locked in close contest

Yash Goyal

Dholpur (Rajasthan), April 6

Among 15 contestants, the ruling BJP and Opposition Congress candidates are locked in a neck-and-neck fight in Dholpur assembly bypoll campaigning for which will end on Friday for voting on April 9. 

The BJP is leaving nothing to chance to add one more seat to its tally of 160 in the House of 200 MLAs. The seat was held by Bahujan Samaj Party that has not fielded its candidate reportedly under political pressure of the present government and BJP supremo Mayawati's “hidden gameplan” of devoting energy to the issue of getting “removed faulty EVMs” from electoral process.

Of the 14 times, the BJP has won Dholpur seat four times, Congress seven and others three times. 

The byelection has been necessitated following the conviction of BSP MLA B L Kushwaha in a murder case.

The BJP has fielded Shobha Rani, wife of Kushwaha, against the Congress' five-time Dholpur MLA Banwari Lal Sharma. The latter had defeated Vasundhara Raje in 1993.

The bypoll would be a litmus test for Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje as well as PCC president Sachin Pilot.

For the BJP, getting a defeat at the hands of Congress could alter the power equation in the state government as Om Mathur, Rajya Sabha MP and a close associate (Pracharak) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is eyeing the chair and his supporters might pitch Mathur as the next leader if not for CMship but a face for the next assembly polls due in 2018. 

If the Congress loses, Pilot who is said to be very close of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will face the ire of a number of Jat, Rajput and OBC leaders, including former chief minister Ashok Gehlot who keeps his flock intact in western Rajasthan.

If caste equation is believed to be the deciding factor, Kushwaha community accounts for 25,042 votes, Brahmin 24,528, Jatav 22,782, Muslims and Lodha less than 15,000 each.

The BJP enjoys support of Kushwaha and other castes, while Congress is banking on Brahmin, Jatav and other SC-ST voters.

CM Raje is not going to campaign but will be holding meetings with groups of all communities called by ministers belonging to different castes at her 'Raj Vilas Palace'.

Fifteen of her Cabinet colleagues and heads of certain government bodies have been working day and night to woo voters of respective castes to restore the “prestige” of the CM and to continue PM Modi's winning streak after the BJP victory in four states recently. 

The CEC order on Congress' complaint has compelled the state government to shift Kushwaha who was running election office from Dholpur's hospital and jail, to Srigangangar prison.

On People's Green Party petition the High Court asked the Dholpur police to file an FIR against the chairman of Rajasthan Livestock Animal Board, Jagmohan Singh Bagehl, who had allegedly kidnapped PGP's candidate Makhan Bagehl and did not release him to file his nomination papers. 

On Wednesday, raking up issue of the model code of conduct, the Congress demanded the CEC that Raje's two officials Abdul Sageer, and OSD Dheerendra Kamthan and Minister Yunus Khan should be sent out of Dholpur constituency as they were reportedly present to lure and put pressure on voters and could possibly “rig the poll”.

The CM and her ministers' team is facing the tough time as people are thronging Dholpur to submit their demand letters, especially for employment and public works. 

BJP state president Ashok Parnami said all-round development of Dholpur, neglected in the Congress tenures, would be the main plank to seek vote and support of all castes. 

Pilot, however, said, "Why Raje went out of party fold to field a woman candidate of the convicted BSP MLA who was running election campaign from jail and hospital? Both husband and wife are wanted by police in many chit-fund and criminal cases not only in Rajasthan but also in MP and UP. The bypoll result would be a reflection of Raje's 40-month governance.” 

EC will use Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines to avoid controversial EVMs. 

About 2,000 policemen, two companies each of BSF and ITBP, seven RAC will guard 232 booths in which over 1.82 lakh voters would exercise their franchise on April 9, the Additional Director General of Police, Law and Order, NRK Reddy told The Tribune.  

Since Dholpur is very close to Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh border, the police are taken up all measures to stop miscreants and supply of liquor, Reddy said.

As Dholpur was once dacoit-infested constituency, the police and intelligence department have also put boats on surveillance.

The Election Commission has marked 68 booths as sensitive and 18 check points across Dholpur have been created.