Vasundhara ignores high command’s hints, refuses to step back

New Delhi: Despite a clear signal from the BJP high command before the upcoming Rajasthan Assembly elections to not declare her as a chief ministerial candidate, former Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Vasundhara Raje Scindia is not ready to leave the electoral field without making her presence felt in the party.

Despite the insistence of Vasundhara Raje Scindia, the BJP high command may not have declared her as the chief ministerial candidate or the head of the election campaign committee for the upcoming state polls, but as one of the tallest leaders in Rajasthan politics she is still not ready to leave the electoral field without a strong fight.

Considering the political mood of the BJP high command and the preparedness of the party’s state unit leadership, Vasundhara Raje Scindia is focusing on working hard at the grassroot level. For the fifth consecutive time she not only ensured a party ticket from Jhalrapatan Assembly constituency but more of her supporters also got tickets from the party.

A senior BJP leader said that whether there was a meeting of the Rajasthan BJP Core Committee leaders held at the residence of election in-charge and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi or at party’s National President J.P. Nadda’s residence or a meeting of the Central Election Committee at the BJP headquarters, Vasundhara Raje Scindia was seen strongly advocating support for her supporters in every party meeting.

Many a times Vasundhara Raje Scindia had differences with other party leaders inside these party meetings. This was no less than a surprise for those party leaders who knew the working style of the former Rajasthan Chief Minister.

BJP has so far declared the names of 184 candidates for the upcoming Rajasthan Assembly polls and the releasing of four list of party candidates in itself tells that Vasundhara Raje Scindia has won the first political bout with the saffron party.

Vasundhara Raje Scindia may not have succeeded despite lobbying for party tickets to more than a dozen loyalists like Kailash Meghwal, Rajpal Singh Shekhawat, Ashok Parnami and Yunus Khan but she managed to get party tickets for 52 of her supporters such as Kalicharan Saraf, Vasudev Devnani, Anita Bhadel, including Pushpendra Singh Ranawat, Jagsi Ram Koli, Pratap Lal Gameti, Gopichand Meena, Ashok Dogra, Pratap Singh Singhvi, Siddhi Kumari, Surendra Singh Rathore and Deepti Maheshwari.

Of the total 184 candidates declared by the saffron party for the upcoming state polls, 52 are supporters or loyalists of Vasundhara Raje Scindia.

However, according to a senior leader of Rajasthan BJP unit, among the remaining candidates, there are 15-20 who are not part of any faction within the party but need the support of Vasundhara Raje Scindia to win the upcoming Rajasthan Assembly elections. Even on the remaining 16 seats, Vasundhara Raje Scindia is strongly lobbying for tickets for about a dozen of her close confidantes.

On lobbying for tickets to her staunch supporters, Vasundhara Raje Scindia has left Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Lok Sabha Speaker and MP Om Birla and even State Party President C.P. Joshi far behind.

On the other hand, Yunus Khan, a close confidante to Vasundhara Raje Scindia and the only Muslim leader of BJP in Rajasthan, has given a massive blow to the BJP high command by quitting the party and fight as an Independent since he was miffed over not getting the ticket from the party.

If Congress or BJP fail to get a majority in Rajasthan, then independent MLAs can play a significant role in formation of the government and several BJP rebel leaders like Yunus Khan will likely support Vasundhara Raje Scindia.

Now Vasundhara Raje Scindia will try hard to get as many of her supporters as possible in the formation of government after winning the elections so that she can show her massive strength of support by saying that she will respect the majority of the legislature party.

IANS