Apart from national parties, the third major party is Hanuman Beniwal’s Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP), but it will be challenging for them to compete with national parties. Beniwal states that without the RLP, no party can form a government in Rajasthan. However this time, the RLP has fielded candidates in all seats, making the electoral competition stronger. In Rajasthan, three small parties, Jananayak Janata Party (JJP), Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP), and Azaad Samaj Party (ASP), are contesting in the elections this time.
With the coalition of Beniwal’s RLP and Chandrashekhar’s ASP fielding candidates on more than a hundred seats, about five dozen seats among them can be crucial where Jat-Dalit dynamics could prove decisive. JJP has also fielded candidates on about two dozen seats bordering Haryana. The main point is that Hanuman Beniwal has kept an eye on the backyards of national parties and has also given tickets to some of their constituencies.
Beniwal aims to disrupt the election game between BJP and the Congress
Both BJP and Congress, the two major parties, are focused on wooing Jat voters. Meanwhile, the entry of JJP along with the coalition of RLP and ASP has made the Jat vote a battleground. Parties like RLP and JJP have put more stakes in the backyards of BJP and Congress. Beniwal’s strategy is more focused on disrupting the game between BJP and Congress for more seats. If both parties manage to get six to seven per cent votes together, any party among Congress and BJP can come close to power in Rajasthan.
Hanuman Beniwal’s party RLP is influential in areas like Nagaur, Sikar, Jhunjhunu, and Bharatpur, where Jat voters are significant. Beniwal is an MP from Nagaur and is contesting from the Jatland seat. Similarly, JJP’s focus is also on Jat areas. Meanwhile, ASP’s name is prominent in the Dalit-majority Marwar region.
Key faces for these parties
Hanuman Beniwal, the MP from Nagaur, is the chief face of RLP and the biggest face of the party. Beniwal’s party has given tickets to more than half a dozen backyards of both BJP and Congress. Former president of BJP SC Morcha, BL Bhati, is also on the RLP ticket from the Jaisalmer seat. Similarly, Anandi Ram Prajesh, a member of the Congress committee, is also on the RLP ticket. Dushyant Chautala, the chief face of JJP, is searching for political ground in Rajasthan. Meanwhile, Chandrashekhar is the chief face of ASP.
Results in previous elections
In the previous elections, RLP received a 2.3 per cent vote share and won three seats. It is the first year for JJP and ASP in Rajasthan’s political scenario. While Congress won 99 seats with a 39.8 per cent vote share. BJP, with a 39.3 per cent vote share, won 73 seats, staying 26 seats behind Congress. Congress formed the government with the support of the BSP and independent candidates.
Issues on which the small parties are fighting the elections
RLP is raising the issue of Jat CM in the Rajasthan elections. JJP, contesting on about two dozen seats, is making the problems and development of the Jat community a key issue. Small parties are also highlighting the neglect of the Jat-Dalit combination.