Jaipur, Oct 22 Long queues were seen on Thursday at polling stations across villages in Rajasthan for the first phase of Panchayati Raj elections, even though some villages boycotted the polls and technical glitches were reported at others.
The panchayat elections that are being held a month after the urban local body polls are being seen as another important test of strength for the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress ahead of the assembly elections due towards the end of 2028.
Thousands exercised their franchise for the panchayat polls, with both parties seeking to consolidate their support at the grassroots level and demonstrate their organisational strength in rural Rajasthan.
Polling began at 7 am across 16 districts to elect members of 16 zila parishads and 104 panchayat samitis.
According to election officials, the overall voter turnout stood at 56.74 per cent till 6 pm. Final polling percentage is yet to be declared.
Among the districts, Bikaner recorded 71.44 per cent polling till 6 pm, followed by Jhalawar at 68.35 per cent, Jaipur at 67.60 per cent and Alwar at 64.89 per cent.
While voters turned out in large numbers at several places, polling was boycotted in some villages over grievances related to administrative boundaries and local issues.
In Kota district’s Itawa area, residents of Chaktodi-Todikhedli village under Sinota gram panchayat stayed away from voting, protesting the inclusion of their village under a gram panchayat located about 11 km away.
Krishna Meena, a resident, said the village was earlier part of the Dhipri Chambal gram panchayat but had been shifted to Sinota, causing inconvenience, particularly to elderly residents.
In Pali district, villagers boycotted polling in Duthariya village under Rani panchayat samiti and Nepawas village under Sojat panchayat samiti. Voting was also boycotted at a booth in ward number 3 of Sojat panchayat samiti, and Khirja Mangal Singh Nagar in Jodhpur district.
In Rajsamand district, polling was briefly disrupted in Keshuli under Nathdwara following a technical snag in an electronic voting machine (EVM). Officials replaced the faulty machine and voting resumed around 8 am.
A total of 85,07,306 voters are eligible to elect representatives to 293 zila parishad wards and 1,788 panchayat samiti wards in the first phase.
Altogether, 6,976 candidates are contesting 2,081 seats, including 1,693 candidates for zila parishad seats and 5,283 for panchayat samiti seats.
The first phase covers Ajmer, Alwar, Barmer, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Dungarpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Phalodi, Rajsamand, Sirohi and Udaipur districts.
Among the zila parishads, Bhilwara has the highest number of wards at 28, followed by Udaipur with 25, Barmer with 24 and Jaipur with 22.
Jaipur has the highest number of candidates for zila parishad seats at 154, followed by Bikaner with 138 and Alwar and Jodhpur with 133 each.
In the panchayat samiti elections, Nagaur has the highest number of candidates at 470, followed by Barmer with 467 and Bhilwara with 466.
The Panchayati Raj elections are being conducted in three phases for 41 zila parishads and 457 panchayat samitis, besides elections for panches and sarpanches in 14,403 gram panchayats.
Polling for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members in the second phase will be held on October 28, followed by the third phase on November 3.
Elections for panches and sarpanches in the third phase are scheduled for November 5, while indirect elections for up-sarpanches (deputy sarpanches) will take place on November 6.
(PTI News)
