A Tough Test For BJP And Congress In Rajasthan As State Votes Today

Polling is scheduled to take place from 7 am to 6 pm in 199 out of 200 constituencies. The election in Sriganganagar's Karanpur seat has been adjourned due to the death of the Congress candidate.

Ultimate test for Congress and BJP in Rajasthan as state goes to polls today.

Source : PTI

Rajasthan Elections 2023: Voting has begun on the 199 assembly seats in Rajasthan concluding weeks of campaigning, slugfest, and attempts to woo voters with an aim of claiming power in the state. The polls in Rajasthan are going to be a critical test for the ruling Congress government that went through several hurdles in its five-year rule. An uprising against the incumbent CM Ashok Gehlot, led by his former deputy Sachin Pilot nearly pulled down the government in 2020, but the high command managed the crisis.

Congress is eyeing to break the 'rotatory ruling' jinx in the state by winning the polls again for the second time in a row, whereas the BJP is pushing ahead the safety and security of women among other issues of debates to get more numbers on December 3, when the results are announced. Also, the BJP is aiming to bag the state again amid a situation when it does not have a CM face yet.

Polling is scheduled to take place from 7 am to 6 pm in 199 out of 200 constituencies. The election in Sriganganagar's Karanpur seat has been adjourned due to the demise of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Koonar, who was also the sitting MLA, news agency PTI reported. 

According to Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta, tight security arrangements are in place to ensure smooth completion of the voting process in the state.

A total of 1,862 candidates are contesting the polls, with 5,25,38,105 voters, including 1,70,99,334 in the 18-30 age group, and 22,61,008 new voters in the 18-19 age group. Key leaders from the BJP and Congress, who are contesting the polls, are Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Congress leader Sachin Pilot, former CM and BJP leader Vasundhara Raje, and opposition leader Rajendra Rathore.

The saffron party has given tickets to 59 MLAs, including defected Congress MLA Girraj Singh Malinga, and six Lok Sabha and one Rajya Sabha member. On the other hand, the Congress party has fielded 97 MLAs, including seven independents and one from the BJP, Shobharani Kushwah, who was expelled from the party last year.