Caste-based social engineering dominates poll candidacy

Both the BJP and Congress are paying full attention to social engineering in the elections. They are focusing on caste factors to influence voters, from candidate selection to wooing voters. The BJP has clearly accused the Congress of Muslim appeasement. On the other hand, BJP candidates are openly accusing the government of serious appeasement in their speeches. When it comes to caste equations, both the BJP and Congress have left no stone unturned in playing the game with both dominant and marginalized castes. They have also given space to people from royal families in politics. In many places, surprising names based on caste have been given tickets. Congress and BJP have given more importance to the Rajput, Brahmin, SC, ST, and Jat communities in ticket distribution.

Congress favours Jat, while BJP prefers the SC category
Congress has provided the Jat community with the highest number of tickets, whereas the Bharatiya Janata Party has given the SC category the most tickets. Efforts have been made by both Congress and BJP to accommodate two major communities in announcing candidates for the 200 assembly seats in Rajasthan. Congress has allocated a total of 36 tickets to the Jat community, while BJP has allocated the highest number of 34 tickets to the SC category. Congress has also given 34 tickets to the SC community. On the other hand, BJP has fielded 33 Jat candidates in this election.

Staying away from caste and religion
It is worth mentioning that political parties emphasise the need to distance themselves from caste and religion during elections. However, the selection of candidates is often based on their caste and religion. Whenever tickets are distributed, the first consideration is the candidate’s caste and religion. The situation is such that the BJP rejected Abhishek Singh’s ticket from the Masuda constituency in Ajmer district due to questions raised about his religion and caste. As a result, the BJP has now given the ticket to Virendra Singh Kanawat from the Rajput community in Masuda, in an attempt to address caste-based concerns.