LIVE | Rajasthan elections: Over 68% voter turnout till 5 pm
Polling for 199 assembly constituencies in the state began at 7 am
Villagers show their ink-marked fingers after casting votes for the Rajasthan Assembly elections, in Ajmer, Saturday, November 25, 2023. Photo: PTI
Nearly 25 per cent of the electorate cast their votes in the first four hours of voting in Rajasthan on Saturday (November 25). Polling for 199 assembly constituencies in the state began at 7 am.
"The voting percentage in the state till 11 am is 24.74," a spokesperson of the election department said.
Till 11 am, the highest polling of 38.56 per cent was recorded in the Kaman assembly constituency and 34.08 per cent in Tijara, the official said.
On Saturday (November 25), polling is being held in 199 out of the 200 assembly constituencies in the state. Elections in Karanpur in Sriganganagar have been postponed due to the demise of the Congress candidate.
The votes will be counted on December 3.
The BJP is going all out to wrest power from the Congress which hopes to beat the state's anti-incumbency tradition.
Also Read: Rajasthan Assembly polls: Can Congress buck the see-saw trend finally?
"Polling began at 7 am today. A total of 51,507 polling booths have been set up across the state," Rajasthan's chief electoral officer Praveen Gupta said.
There are 5,25,38,105 voters in the 199 assembly constituencies.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot (Sardarpura), former chief minister Vasundhara Raje (Jhalrapatan), former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot (Tonk), state PCC chief Govind Singh Dotasra (Lachhmangarh), RLP convenor Hanuman Beniwal (Khinvsar) are some of the key faces among the 1,862 candidates in the fray.
More than 1.70 lakh security personnel have been deployed across the state. 70,000 Rajasthan Police personnel, 18,000 Rajasthan Home Guards, 2,000 Rajasthan Border Home Guards, 15,000 Home Guards of other states (Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh), 120 RAC Companies have been deployed for the day.
While the ruling Congress is hoping that it will retain its government in Rajasthan, opposition party BJP is eyeing a return in the state ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year.
Gehlot who is in his third term as chief minister is contesting from Sardarpura, a seat he has been representing since 1998. The chief minister is up against BJP's Mahendra Singh Rathore, former chairman of the Jodhpur Development Authority.
In Tonk, which has a sizable Muslim population, Congress party's former state chief Sachin Pilot will face BJP’s Ajit Singh Mehta, who represented the seat in 2013.
This is the second assembly election for Pilot, who has previously won Lok Sabha polls from Dausa and Ajmer.
Former chief minister Vasundhara Raje is contesting from Jhalrapatan constituency, which she currently represents with Congress' Ram Lal Chauhan pitted against her. She has been the chief minister for two terms.
Jat leader Hanuman Beniwal, who founded the Rastriya Loktantrik Party, could be a concern for both the BJP and Congress in Khinvsar.
Several leaders of the BJP and Congress have rebelled against their parties after being denied a ticket Chief BJP rebels include former assembly speaker Kailash Meghwal, Chandrabhan Akya from Chittorgarh and former transport minister Yoonus Khan from Deedwana.
In Congress, main rebel candidates include Joharilal Meena from Rajgarh-Laxmangarh, Gopal Baheti in Pushkar, Habiburrahman from Nagaur, Virendra Beniwal in Lunkaransar, Khiladi Lal Bairwa in Baseri, and Dr. Param Navdeep Singh in Sangaria.
The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are also contesting the assembly polls in the state.
(With agency inputs)
68.24 per cent voter turnout till 5 pm, according to the Election Commission.
More than 55 per cent of the electorate cast their votes in the Rajasthan Assembly elections till 3 pm, officials said.
The BJP on Saturday accused Rahul Gandhi of violating poll guidelines with his post on X on the day of the Rajasthan Assembly polls and urged the Election Commission to seek suspension of the Congress leader's social media account and initiate other actions against him.
In his post, Rahul urged people to elect the Congress and said, "Rajasthan will choose free treatment. Rajasthan will choose cheaper gas cylinder. Rajasthan will choose interest-free agricultural loan. Rajasthan will choose English education. Rajasthan will choose OPS. Rajasthan will choose caste census." The BJP wrote to the Election Commission, saying his post violates the silence period of 48 hours during which any type of campaign is barred. It accused the ex-Congress chief of violating the Representation of the People Act and the Model Code of Conduct and sought the EC's action.
"The social media platform X and its functionaries may also be directed to immediately suspend the account and remove the aforestated offending contents with immediate effect lest it further violates the 48-hour silence zone and cause irreparable injury to the doctrine of free and fair elections," it said.
The BJP said the poll panel should also direct the Chief Election Officer, Rajasthan, to file a criminal complaint and initiate criminal prosecution against Rahul.
According to the Election Commission (EC), 40.27% voter turnout was recorded till 1 pm.
Nearly 25 per cent of the electorate cast their votes in the first four hours of voting in Rajasthan on Saturday (November 25).
Polling in 199 assembly constituencies in the state began at 7 am.
The voting percentage till 11 am was 24.74, an official said.
Till 11 am, the highest polling of 38.56 per cent was recorded in the Kaman assembly constituency and 34.08 per cent in Tijara, the official said.
Voting will continue till 6 pm.
The Congress on Saturday (November 25) appealed to voters in Rajasthan to exercise their franchise and elect its "government of guarantees" and one that works for the benefit of the people.
In a post in Hindi on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, "Savings, relief, growth, and dreams flying high, people benefiting from welfare schemes…will choose only Rajasthan! The aware people of Rajasthan know that their valuable vote is the guarantee of their happiness. The people of Rajasthan, the land of great heroes and symbol of social unity, are requested to exercise their franchise. Make sure that there are no obstacles in your improving life. It is an appeal to young friends and first-time voters to cast their vote. Choose social security, choose economic empowerment, choose only the guarantee of prosperity and development."
In a post on X, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said, "Rajasthan will choose free treatment. Rajasthan will choose cheaper gas cylinder. Rajasthan will choose interest-free agricultural loan. Rajasthan will choose English education. Rajasthan will choose OPS. Rajasthan will choose caste census. Today, go out in large numbers and exercise your franchise. Elect a Congress government of guarantees and one that is beneficial to the people."
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also urged the people of Rajasthan to cast their ballot. "Your every vote, for a beautiful future, for rights, for Congress' guarantee," she said.
Priyanka also listed the promises of the Congress such as free treatment of up to Rs 50 lakh, Rs 10 thousand annually to female head of family, gas cylinder for Rs 400, legal guarantee of old pension, 10 lakh new jobs, right to housing, buying cow dung at Rs 2 per kg, MSP to farmers, loan of Rs 2 lakh without interest, laptop for college students, free education even in private schools, and caste census.
Congress general secretary organisation KC Venugopal appealed to the voters of Rajasthan to come out in record numbers and vote for a progressive, prosperous, and inclusive Rajasthan.
"You have seen 5 years of exemplary governance, with welfare programmes that have changed the face of Rajasthan and given a safe and secure environment for everyone. The Chiranjeevi Scheme, mobile phones to women, Indira Rasoi, and many such pro-poor schemes have made a meaningful impact," he said in a post on X.
"You also remember a dark period of the BJP's misrule and corruption, where day-to-day life was tough and their leaders were busy pitting one community against the other and looting the state's coffers. When we return to power, we will fulfil the 7 Guarantees made during the campaign. We did it in Karnataka, we will do it in Rajasthan as well!" Venugopal said.
The time has now come to break this cycle of interrupting a people-centric government with that of the BJP - and vote for 5 more years of Congress, he added.
While the ruling Congress is hoping that it will retain its government in Rajasthan, opposition BJP is eyeing a return in the state ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year.