Jaipur: More than 1.05 crore voters will decide the electoral fate of 8,843 candidates in the fourth and final phase of Panchayati Raj elections Saturday, with polling scheduled in 382 wards of 25 zila parishads and 2,142 wards of 116 panchayat samitis.The phase will see 1,322 candidates contesting zila parishad seats and 7,521 candidates vying for panchayat samiti membership across 11,905 polling booths.The contest also features family members of several political leaders, including senior BJP functionary Rajendra Rathore’s son Parakram Singh and daughter-in-law Kanika Singh Rathore, who are contesting from Churu. Sriganganagar has the highest number of candidates in both zila parishad and panchayat samiti constituencies.Of the total 1,05,94,285 voters, 54,88,275 are men and 51,05,951 are women. The electorate will vote to elect representatives to the remaining zila parishad and panchayat samiti wards in the state, completing the four-phase polling process for the rural local bodies.The fourth phase has 30 zila parishad wards in Sriganganagar, the highest among the districts going to the polls. These seats have attracted 101 candidates, also the highest for any district. In panchayat samitis, Sriganganagar again tops the list, with 553 candidates contesting 164 wards.
