Jaipur: BJP strengthened its hold over Rajasthan’s municipal corporations Tuesday by winning six of seven deputy mayor posts, including in bodies where Congress had a majority or was the single largest party. The remaining deputy mayor post, in Pali, went to an independent councillor, leaving Congress without a single deputy mayor position across the 10 corporations.Outcomes in multiple corporations were influenced by cross-voting, backing from independents and, in two cases, lotteries used to break ties, enabling BJP to secure the deputy mayor posts even where it lacked clear numerical strength.In Bikaner, where Congress has a majority and won the mayoral election the previous day, BJP’s Pankaj Gehlot narrowly defeated Congress candidate Naseem Bano by two votes, acquiring 40 out of 80 votes cast. The decision highlighted internal dynamics as one vote went to the NOTA (None of the Above) option, while another was rejected.In Alwar, BJP’s Ajay Poonia triumphed with 40 votes over Congress’s Mamta Saini, who garnered only 24 votes. Support from independent councillors played a critical role in Poonia’s victory, with one vote declared invalid in the contest. BJP also secured the mayoral post in Alwar a day prior to the deputy mayor election.The elections in Ajmer resulted in an unusual tie, with both BJP’s Hemant Sankhla and Congress’s Naurat Gurjar obtaining 40 votes each. The tie was resolved through a lottery, which favoured Sankhla. Pali witnessed a similar situation, where independent councillor Mehboob T won in the lottery after both candidates received 29 votes.In Udaipur, BJP’s Dinesh Bhatt achieved a decisive victory, receiving 56 votes against Congress candidate Laxminarayan Meghwal, who obtained only 24 votes, thus allowing BJP to hold both key posts in the city.In Bhilwara, BJP’s Radheshyam Somani was elected unopposed after no Congress or independent nominations were filed; the mayor’s post there had also been won unopposed by BJP’s Jaswant Kanwar earlier.In Bharatpur, BJP’s Ambika Saini bested Congress’s Gajendra Saini in the race for deputy mayor. BJP’s achievements in these elections come in the wake of its success in winning six of the seven mayoral positions determined so far, with the party claiming mayorships in Ajmer, Alwar, Pali, and Udaipur, along with uncontested victories in Bharatpur and Bhilwara.Mayoral elections in the remaining three corporations—Jaipur, Jodhpur and Kota—will be held on Sept 25, while the deputy mayor elections will be held on Sept 26.
