Rajasthan election results: In Vasundhara Raje-Manvendra Singh battle in Jhalrapatan, much is at stake
The Sheo MLA is not just fighting a poll battle, he is out to avenge is father’s humiliation.
Arguably the most high-profile contest in the Rajasthan elections this time is between Vasundhara Raje and Manvendra Singh — a poll battle that is also a clash of two ex-royals, with personal vendetta and community pride thrown in.
One on side is Dholpur’s ‘Rani’ Vasundhara Raje, who has been winning the Jhalrapatan area for almost three decades now, as MP or MLA. Her challenger is Manvendra Singh, Sheo MLA, descended from the royals of Barmer, son of former BJP leader Jaswant Singh, and till very recently, Raje’s colleague in the BJP.
Manvendra — and going by reports, a section of the Rajput community — has been nursing a grudge against Raje and the BJP ever since Jaswant Singh was denied a ticket to fight the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Barmer.
However, a direct face-off between Manvendra and Raje came as a surprise — even to the Sheo MLA, who joined the Congress very recently.
On the face of it, Manvendra stands no chance against Raje in her pocket borough (her son Dushyant is the MP from the area).
But there are reasons the Congress chose to field him from Jhalrapatan.
Undeniable, of course, is the optics of the battle royale — a high-profile BJP leader changing party to avenge the humiliation of his father. But there’s more.
Through Raje’s tenure, Rajputs have found many reasons to be miffed with her — the Padmaavat fracas, the encounter of gangster Anandpal Singh, the sealing of the Rajmahal Palace gates by the Jaipur civic body, and finally, choosing OBC leader Madanlal Saini over Rajput Gajendra Shekhawat as the state BJP chief.
The fact that Manvendra has left the BJP to join the Congress has galvanised his loyalists, who see this as an opportunity to set scores straight after 2014. Denied a ticket, Jaswant Singh had contested as an Independent, and lost narrowly. Manvendra was asked to quit the party as he campaigned for his father.
The family rivalry goes deeper — Jaswant Singh was among the leaders advocating Raje’s sidelining after the 2008 Assembly poll defeat.
Jhalrapatan’s voters, too, have reasons to complain. Despite being the CM’s constituency, the area hasn’t seen a lot of development. Unemployment and water scarcity remain issues. Allegations have also been made of benefits flowing only to certain “favourities” of the ruling party.
Manvendra is campaigning hard, and is promising voters to “change the culture” of the place.
Also, the area’s demography may help him — the constituency has around 50,000 Muslim voters, 35,000 Dalits, Dhakars and Rajputs are about 20,000 each, and 15,000 Sondhiya Rajputs.
Muslims and Dalits usually back the Congress, Jaswant Singh always made efforts to reach out to Muslims, and Rajputs are disenchanted with Raje. Also, after her marriage, Raje has become a Jat bahu and hence “less of a Rajput” than Manvendra — something his wife Chitra has been reminding voters of.
But on the other side is Raje’s formidable record in the region. She has been consistently winning from here, increasing her victory margin every election — in 2003, she defeated Rama Pilot, widow of Congress leader Rajesh Pilot, by over 27,000 votes, In 2008, she defeated Mohan Lal by over 32,000 votes, and in 2013, Meenakshi Chandrawat by over 60,000 votes.
Also, the local unit of Congress in Jhalrapatan is not too enthused about an “outsider” being airdropped on them at the last minute.
Even if Manvendra does not win, his candidature has made sure the contest is keenly watched, and a well-fought battle would definitely raise his political profile.