Rajasthan polls: Ashok Gehlot's close aide withdraws nomination as independent, joins BJP

Jaipur, Nov 9 (PTI) Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's close aide and former Jodhpur mayor Rameshwar Dadhich, who had filed his nomination for the upcoming state Assembly polls from the Soorsagar constituency as an independent candidate, withdrew his papers and joined the BJP on Thursday.

Former Dausa district president of the Congress Vinod Sharma also joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday. In Jaipur, former minister Rajpal Singh Shekhawat, who had filed his papers from Jhotwara against the BJP's Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, withdrew his nomination following talks with the party high-command.

"I have joined the BJP due to the decision-making capacity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I have been impressed with his work for long. If Modi was not the prime minister, the construction of the Ram temple (in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh) could not have happened," Dadhich said after joining the saffron party.

He joined the BJP in the presence of Union minister and the party's Rajasthan election in-charge Pralhad Joshi, Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and MP Rajendra Gehlot.

Shekhawat said leaders of the Congress and other parties are joining the BJP as they are fed up with the policies and fake promises of such parties.

He said the time has come for the departure of the Congress government from the desert state.

Other BJP rebels, including Chandrabhan Singh Akya from Chittorgarh, Yoonus Khan from Deedwana, Ravindra Bhati from Sheo, Banshidhar Bajiya from Khandela, Bhawani Singh Shekhawat from Kota's Ladpura, Kailash Meghwal from Shahpura in Bhilwara and Priyanka Choudhary from Barmer, have not withdrawn their nominations as independents, making the electoral contests on these seats triangular.

On the other hand, former Congress MLA from Badi Sadari Prakash Choudhary, Mahendra Barjod from Dungarpur's Chorasi, Rajkaran Choudhary from Sardarshahr and Brahamdev Kumawat from Masuda have not withdrawn from the poll race and have decided to contest as independents.

Thursday was the last day for withdrawing nominations. The 200-member Rajasthan Assembly will go to polls on November 25 and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 3. PTI