Despite occasional appearances of third-front parties in past Rajasthan assembly polls, the political landscape in the region remains predominantly a direct contest between the Congress and BJP. Over the last two decades, no candidate from any party other than these arch-rivals has managed to secure a seat in the State assembly.
While some areas in the state have witnessed victories for candidates from the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, the Communist Party of India and Bhartiya Tribal Party in the past two decades, the Hadoti region has steadfastly stuck to the Congress and BJP without offering any space to third-party contenders. In the Hadoti region, comprising 570 candidates who tested their electoral fate since the 2003 assembly polls, none representing a third front has emerged victorious.
During this period, a total of 70 candidates each from the Congress and BJP, along with 430 independent or third-front candidates, have contested assembly polls. Notably, two independent candidates secured victories in the Baran district’s two assembly constituencies in the 2003 assembly polls. However, these victors were not affiliated with third front parties but were, in fact, rebels from the Congress and BJP. The successful independent candidates were Pramod Jain Bhaya, a Congress rebel from the Baran constituency, and Hemraj Meena, a BJP rebel from the Kishanganj constituency. It’s worth mentioning that in the subsequent 2009 assembly polls, both contested under the banner of their respective political parties.
In response to questions regarding the lack of interest from Hadoti region voters in third-front parties over the past two decades, Laxman Singh Khinchi, BJP General Secretary for Kota City, explained that although independent candidates secured victories in the region in the preceding two decades, the recent era has witnessed exclusive wins for BJP and Congress candidates. He attributed this trend to the voters’ preference for giving a clear mandate to established parties rather than supporting a party unlikely to assume power in the state.
Adding to the discussion, Pankaj Mehta, the Vice-Chairman of the Rajasthan Khadi Gramudyog Board, expressed the view that the region’s voters tend to place their trust in the two major political parties due to the presence of stalwarts and influential leaders within these organizations.
