Huge victory margins in Rajasthan tell a different tale

By Archana Sharma

Jaipur, May 23 (IANS) As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) approaches towards a clean sweep in Rajasthan, the increasing vote margins on many crucial seats prove the slogan "Modi tujhse bair nahin", which once echoed in 2018 in Jhunjhunu.

A huge gathering in the town during a "Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao" event had raised the slogan: "Modi tujhse bair nahin, Vasundhara teri khair nahin".

By the end of the year, half of the slogan proved its worth when the BJP lost the Assembly elections. Soon after, all eyes were set to see if voters would prove that they had no issues with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Six months after the Assembly elections, voters have proved their slogan right by making the BJP win with record margins.

BJP candidate Subhash Chandra Baheria from Bhilwara is ready to smash all records of victory by leading with a margin of 6,10,920 votes. In 2014, BJP's Subhash Baharia won the seat by 2,46,264 votes.

Ajmer's Bhagirath Choudhary is leading by 4,13,671 votes against the victory margin of 1,71,983 votes in 2014.

In Alwar, Baba Balaknath is leading by 3,23,786 votes over Congress candidate Jitendra Bhanwar Singh. This winning margin was 2,83,285 votes in 2014.

In Banswara, Kanakmal Katara leads by 3,04,810 votes against the margin of 91,916 votes in 2014 attained by the BJP's Mansharkar Ninama.

In Barmer, the BJP's Kailash Chaudhary is leading by 3,23,808, leaving Manvendra Singh of the Congress far behind. This difference of votes in 2014 was 87,461.

Ranjita Koli from Bharatpur is ahead by 3,13,440 votes. In 2014, this difference was 2,45,468 when Bahadur Singh Koli won.

C.P. Joshi from Chittaurgarh is leading by 5,76,242 votes and the margin in 2014 was 3,16,857 votes on this seat.

Former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje's son Dushyant Singh is leading by 4,54,066 votes, which in 2014 was 2,81,546.

Karauli Dholpur seat, considered a Congress stronghold, also saw BJP candidate Manoj Rajauriya leading by 95,954. The difference in 2014 was 27,216 when Manoj Rajauriya won the seat.

In Rajsamand, Jaipur princess Diya Kumari is 5,48,952 votes ahead of her nearest rival. Hari Om Singh Rathore in 2014 had won the seat by 3,95,705 votes.

Meanwhile, former BJP President Ashok Parnami said the party would have won the Assembly elections too had the Congress not made fake promises to farmers and unemployed youths about farm loan waivers and unemployment allowance.

"The Congress lied to farmers that their loans will be waived. Also they trapped unemployed youths by promising them unemployment allowance of Rs 3,500, which is yet to be released. Hence, these two sections had voted for the Congress," he told the media.

Parnami was removed from the post after the BJP lost the by-elections in Alwar, Ajmer and Mandalgarh in February 2018.

(Archana Sharma can be contacted at arachana.g@gmail.com)