JAIPUR, October 24 (Aalimi Nation) – Voting began on Saturday in the first phase of Rajasthan's panch and sarpanch elections, covering 3,314 gram panchayats in 16 districts, with polling due to run from 7 am to 6 pm.
The districts in this phase are Ajmer, Alwar, Barmer, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Dungarpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Phalodi, Rajsamand, Sirohi and Udaipur. These are the same districts where voters chose members of zila parishads and panchayat samitis on October 22. About 8.5 million voters are eligible to take part in this phase, according to reports.
According to the figures available, 16,795 candidates are in the fray for sarpanch posts, and polling is also being held for 28,682 ward panch seats. Each voter casts two votes, one for a sarpanch candidate and one for a ward panch candidate.
Barmer has the largest number of gram panchayats in this phase, at 419, followed by Bhilwara with 326, Phalodi with 305 and Udaipur with 284. Bhilwara also has the most sarpanch candidates, at 2,097, ahead of Dungarpur with 1,594, Jaipur with 1,525 and Udaipur with 1,480.
Most contests are crowded. In 2,905 gram panchayats the number of sarpanch candidates is between one and nine, while 311 have between 10 and 19 candidates and two have between 20 and 29. Barmer also has the largest number of ward panch seats, at 3,025, followed by Bhilwara with 2,872 and Udaipur with 2,466.
Panchayat elections in Rajasthan are not fought on party symbols, and the State Election Commission allots symbols to individual candidates. Political parties often back candidates informally.
Counting is expected to begin after polling closes, with results for many panchayats likely to emerge late in the evening. Officials have indicated that tight or disputed contests could take longer to settle if recounts are required. Indirect elections for the post of up-sarpanch, in which the elected ward panchs vote, are scheduled for Sunday, October 25, for the gram panchayats that voted in this phase.
The panchayati raj elections are being held in four phases across the state, covering 41 zila parishads, 457 panchayat samitis and 14,403 gram panchayats. Voting for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members is scheduled for October 22, October 28, November 3 and November 14, with counting for those bodies set for November 20.
The remaining phases of voting for panch and sarpanch posts are scheduled for October 30, November 5 and November 16, following the first phase on October 24.
Turnout figures for the first phase had not been released at the time of writing, and the number of candidates declared elected unopposed in this phase was not clear from the information available. Candidate numbers vary slightly between accounts, and final figures will be confirmed by the State Election Commission once counting is complete.
Panchayat elections are the first rung of Rajasthan's rural governance structure. Sarpanchs and ward panchs oversee village-level development work, local welfare schemes and the use of funds allotted to gram panchayats.
