Rajasthan: Congress slams BJP for delaying local body, panchayat polls

Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra accused the BJP govt of delaying local body polls and manipulating reservations. He said Congress has given 48.15% tickets to OBCs and alleged corruption in sanitation tenders and MCC violations.

Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra on Friday accused the BJP-led state government of deliberately delaying the 2026 urban local body and panchayat elections and alleged irregularities in the reservation process.

The polling for urban local bodies in Rajasthan will be held in two phases on September 9 and 11, according to the State Election Commission. The counting of votes will be held on September 14.

Allegations of Election Delay and Reservation Fraud

Addressing a press conference in Jaipur, Dotasra alleged that the state government had delayed the elections citing the pending report of the Other Backwards Classes (OBC) Commission. He further alleged that the reservation lottery conducted for the elections involved manipulation of SC and ST reservations in 10 municipal corporations.

Congress Highlights Candidate Representation

Dotasra said the Congress has given 48.15 per cent of its tickets to OBC candidates in the urban local body elections, while 21.08 per cent of tickets went to candidates from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community. He said 5.23 per cent of the party's tickets were given to candidates from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community and 35.90 per cent to women candidates.

Poll Promises on Taxes and Land Leases

The Rajasthan Congress chief also said that if the party comes to power, it would reconsider the Urban Development (UD) tax and provide further relief to people. He added that the party would also reduce charges related to the allocation of land leases.

Accusations over Sanitation Worker Recruitment

Questioning the recruitment process for sanitation workers in urban local bodies, Dotasra alleged that the notification issued by the state government was merely a "show" and that the rules would not allow the recruitment process to be completed. He also alleged widespread corruption in sanitation tenders.

BJP Accused of Violating Model Code of Conduct

Dotasra accused BJP leaders and ministers in Rajasthan of violating the Model Code of Conduct and alleged that people were being threatened and intimidated during the election process.

He said the Congress had deliberately not fielded candidates in around 1,500 wards as part of a strategy for the urban local body elections.

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