Rajasthan Elections 2023: Will BJP rely on Vasundhara Raje again if it wins?

Rajasthan is voting on Saturday (25 November) to elect a 200-member House. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is banking on the desert state’s decades-old riwaz of ousting the incumbent and hoping to form the next government. On the other hand, Congress is aiming to buck this trend and return to power. If the saffron party does trounce Congress in Rajasthan, there is a big question of who will be its chief minister. The BJP fought the Rajasthan Assembly elections under a collective leadership, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi declaring at a rally in October that “BJP has only one face and that face is lotus (BJP’s election symbol)”. Will Vasundhara Raje again be BJP’s choice for the CM post if it comes to power? Or will it pick a new face? Let’s take a closer look. Will Vasundhara Raje return? The BJP sidelined its most popular face in Rajasthan – Vasundhara Raje. It is widely known that the former CM does not enjoy an easy relationship with the party high command. Not only was she not projected as the saffron party’s frontrunner for the top post like in previous elections, but several of her loyalists were also denied tickets. It was only in the second list that the BJP appeared to placate Raje by fielding 27 of her supporters. The veteran politician got a ticket from her stronghold Jhalrapatan, which she has won since 2003. “She has demonstrated her power and has indicated that BJP cannot afford to ignore her under any circumstances,” poll analyst Narayan Bareth told Deccan Herald (DH).  [caption id=“attachment_13427862” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Vasundhara Raje has not had an easy relationship with the BJP top brass. PTI File Photo[/caption] He said the royal’s appeal cuts across all castes. Amid factionalism in the state unit, Raje has reached out to disgruntled leaders, as per DH. “Her outreach has been to pacify the dissenting leaders and she has tackled them in her own way, motivating many in the way,” Bareth said. However, the BJP still chose not to portray her as its choice for the top post. And if media reports are to be believed, this is unlikely to change. As per an Indian Express report, the saffron party may seek a leadership change if it wins a majority. But “the party may fall back on her leadership to rally its troops together” if it bags only a thin majority, the report added. Even if this happens, the top brass has told the senior leaders in the state to adopt a “pragmatic approach” by giving Raje due respect but not letting her dictate terms, sources told the English daily. Speaking to DH, Sunil Bhargava, head of BJP’s state policy and research wing, said that Raje, who is the party’s national vice-president, has “always been part of the core group that finally decides the tickets.” Some also feel that going to polls without a leader could work against the party. “There is no question that if Vasundharaji had been projected, we would have won a two-thirds majority in Rajasthan. We believe we are winning this, but we would have been on surer footing if she was our CM face,” a BJP leader was quoted as saying by BusinessLine. What other options does the BJP have? The BJP has no dearth of leaders if it wants to deny Raje a third term as the Rajasthan CM. Satya Narain Bhansali, the Office Incharge at the BJP’s Ajmer headquarters, told BusinessLine that the party will emerge with “an innovative choice” for the chief ministerial post. According to the Indian Express report, the BJP high command’s decision would be based several factors, such as caste, ties with the central leadership, and skills to keep the state unit united. [caption id=“attachment_13427872” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] UP CM Yogi Adityanath, aboard a bulldozer, takes part in a roadshow for BJP candidate Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore from the Jhotwara constituency, in Jaipur. PTI File Photo[/caption] With the Opposition demanding a nationwide caste census and trying to woo the OBCs, the BJP could consider Mahant Balaknath, the incumbent BJP MP from Alwar, who was given a ticket for the Assembly polls from the Tijara seat, the report added. Balaknath, who has modelled himself after Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, is likely to be a contender for the top post. Other big names include Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Jaipur royal Diya Kumari, Union law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, BJP Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Rajendra Singh Rathore, former Union minister Rajyavardhan Rathore, former Rajasthan BJP chief Satish Punia, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Rajasthan BJP chief CP Joshi, and, surprisingly, Union minister Ashwani Vaishnaw, reported Indian Express. While we have to wait for 3 December to know which party was successful in courting the Rajasthan voters this time, many within the BJP, as per BussinessLine, believe this might be it for Raje. With inputs from agencies