Rajasthan has started rolling out the voting counts of the 309 urban local bodies, and the counting process is expected to be completed in the state on Monday as there has been strict security provided.
Security has been deployed both in and around the counting sites and access is being denied to unauthorised persons. Arrangements have been tightened up for a smooth and peaceful counting process, officials said.
An estimated 10,245 councillors will be chosen from the 309 urban local authorities. This encompasses 10 Municipal Corporations, 51 Municipal Councils and 248 Municipalities. The voter turnout in the elections was more than 1.44 crore.
There were two phases of polling. Voters have turned out at 76.42 per cent across 162 urban local bodies at polling centres today on September 9. The remaining 147 voters cast their votes on September 11, and 70.68 per cent turned up.
The counting procedure has thrown up the issue of Jaipur Municipal elections as a major focus. Congress leader Pratap Singh Khachariyawas said that it was premature to make any conclusions from the initial trend as the Congress was on its way to a good mandate in the state capital but also suggested that the opposition was also coming on strong in the city.
Sharma, the Chairman of the Mukti Committee of Khachariyawas, also made serious allegations against the BJP government, asserting that Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma had called up the collector of Jaipur and requested the government to give the BJP an edge in the tight spots. He stated that “if they deviate from using regular voting they will get into trouble or conflicts the case will be with the BJP.
The accusations have thrown a political shade over the counting process and have now brought the battle to the final result tally of the urban local bodies in Rajasthan.