As Jalore swings to Gujarat mood, Congress needs to walk extra mile

Distance and development often fail to get along. The fate of the remote Jalore Lok Sabha constituency, located in south-western corner of Rajasthan, is no different despite big names like former Union home minister Buta Singh of Congress and former BJP president Bangaru Laxman seeking their mandates from the constituency in the past. The constituency continues to depend on bordering Gujarat for medical facilities, drinking and irrigation water, education and employment.
With almost every other household here having a member working in Gujarat, people’s political views are influenced more by the neighbouring state. For the past 15 years, people here have been electing BJP in the general elections. In the state elections held four months back, BJP won six of the eight assembly segments in Jalore Lok Sabha area. In 2013 state polls, BJP had won on seven seats.
The saffron party has repeated its sitting MP Devji Patel. Despite anti-incumbency against him, Patel would be attempting a hattrick in the elections due on April 29. The BJP candidate faces former Congress MLA Ratan Devasi, who is contesting Lok Sabha elections for the first time. During the Ashok Gehlot-government from 2008 to 2013, Devasi was the party’s chief whip.
Both parties are playing the caste card in the constituency, which comprises Jalore and Sirohi districts. Patel belongs to Kalbi community, while Devasi comes from Rebari -both are OBC (Other Backward Classes). Jalore Lok Sabha seat is dominated by OBC, SC, Rajputs and Mali.
Prior to 2008 delimitation, the LS seat was reserved for SC candidates. This lured Buta Singh and Bangaru Laxman, both SC candidates, who were facing problems back home in Punjab and Andhra Pradesh, respectively. Singh won from here in 1984 when Punjab was in the grip of militancy and could not hold general elections.
But in 1989, Kailash Meghwal defeated Singh and emerged as giant killer, winning the seat for BJP for the first time. Singh, though, made a comeback in 1991 and won the seat two more times in 1998 and 1999. He contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election too as an independent, making the contest triangular between BJP’s Devji Patel and Congress’ Udai Lal Anjana, who is now cooperatives minister in the Gehlot government. BJP’s Bangaru Laxman lost to Singh in 1999 but his wife Susheela Laxman defeated the Congressman in 2004. Since then the seat is with BJP.