Jaipur: BJP and Congress were separated by less than one percentage point in vote share in Rajasthan’s 309 urban local body elections, but the gap widened sharply when it came to wards won.BJP polled 99,615 more votes than Congress, but it won 566 more wards.Across the 309 urban local bodies, BJP received 37.35 lakh votes, or 35.18% of the total, while Congress polled 36.35 lakh votes, accounting for 34.24%. BJP’s overall vote tally was therefore 99,615 higher than Congress’s.Independent candidates secured 29.06 lakh votes, or 27.38% of the total, making them the third-largest group in terms of votes. Among other parties, Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) received 1,00,277 votes, Aam Aadmi Party 49,829, CPM 34,170, BSP 30,179 and BAP 14,150. NOTA received 1.09 lakh votes.A BJP functionary said, “The difference became much larger when the results were counted ward-wise. Of the 10,244 wards across the state, results for 10,235 have been declared, while repolling is due in nine wards.”He added, “In the declared results, BJP won 4,179 wards, followed by the Congress with 3,613 and Independents with 2,273. The BJP’s lead over the Congress in wards was therefore 566.”The figures show that a relatively small difference in the overall vote count produced a much larger difference in the number of wards won. Since every ward is a separate contest, the final tally is influenced by individual candidates, victory margins and the presence of independent candidates.“BJP secured a clear majority in 60 urban local bodies. In another 11 ULBs, the BJP and Congress won an equal number of seats, leaving Independents and candidates from other parties in a potentially important position in board formation,” added a BJP leader.BJP and Congress ended with equal seats in Pisangan, Anta, Kapren, Rajaldesar, Basedi, Suratgarh, Marwar Junction, Dhariyawad and Khatushyamji.The results also underline the strong role played by Independents. “Their 27.38% vote share was only around seven percentage points below the BJP’s 35.18% and nearly three percentage points below the Congress’s 34.24%,” said a political analyst.
