India Prime TV: Following the announcement of the Jaipur Municipal Corporation election results, lobbying and political maneuvering for the posts of Mayor and Deputy Mayor have intensified significantly.
In the elections, both the BJP and Congress fielded a total of 25 candidates from the Mali community, out of which 5 from the BJP, 3 from the Congress, and 1 independent candidate secured a spectacular victory. Spurred by this political success, the Mali community has now directly staked its claim to the post of Mayor in the Jaipur Municipal Corporation. A delegation from the community met with BJP State President Madan Rathore to strongly demand that a member of the Mali community be appointed as the Mayor of Jaipur.
Regarding political representation in the municipal corporation, the Mali-Saini community has opened a front against both major political parties. Under the joint aegis of the Rajasthan State Saini-Mali Mahasabha and the Jaipur District Mali-Saini Samaj Sanstha, the community has united to begin mobilization under a strategic electoral plan.
The turmoil over the demand for tickets had intensified right from the beginning of the Jaipur Municipal Corporation elections. A massive mass meeting was organized by the Mali-Saini Samaj Sanstha at Malion Ki Bagichi in Hasanpura. In this meeting, prominent leaders of the community raised a strong voice demanding 30 tickets each from both major parties—the BJP and the Congress—in the wards of the Jaipur Municipal Corporation.
However, anger has flared within the community due to the lack of adequate political representation and the parties ignoring their ticket demands. Prompted by this resentment, the community has made a major announcement to boycott voting in the municipal wards falling under the Civil Lines and Kishanpol assembly constituencies. Notably, there are approximately 45,000 voters
from the Mali-Saini community in these two areas, holding the power to swing the win-loss equations.
Amid this protest, new alignments are also emerging within the corporation. While discussions are at their peak to appoint the Mayor and Deputy Mayor from the general category (Vaishya, Brahmin, and Rajput communities), political analysts believe that to retain the core OBC vote bank, considerations are being made to include a face from the Mali or Kumawat community in the race for the Deputy Mayor post. It now remains to be seen what steps the political parties will take following this firm stance by the community.
