Congress forms panel to probe cross-voting, civic poll setbacks in Rajasthan

Jaipur, Oct 3 (IANS) The Congress party has initiated an internal probe into allegations of cross-voting and organisational lapses during Rajasthan's recent urban local body elections, with the party constituting a nine-member committee to examine its setbacks in several civic bodies. 

The committee has been set up under former Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Dr C.P. Joshi to examine the party's setbacks in several local bodies, including allegations of cross-voting and poor floor management.

The committee has been asked to submit its report within seven days. The committee includes Ramsingh Kaswan, Murarilal Meena, Kuldeep Indora, Pramod Jain Bhaya, Shakuntala Rawat, Hakam Ali, Ganesh Ghoghra and Raghuvir Singh Rathore.

The Pradesh Congress Committee has collected reports from different districts regarding councillors who allegedly voted against official Congress candidates during elections for mayors and chairpersons.

Party sources said preparations are underway for disciplinary action against councillors found responsible for cross-voting. Reports have suggested that the number of Congress councillors under scrutiny could be in the hundreds, although the final number will depend on the inquiry and verification of individual cases.

The controversy gained prominence after Congress candidates lost elections in several local bodies despite the party having a significant number of councillors.

In Bikaner, for example, Congress had 41 councillors against the BJP's 27, but the BJP candidate won the deputy mayor election 40-38, prompting allegations of cross-voting and a demand for an inquiry.

The Congress leadership has also taken note of the party's performance in municipal corporations and other local bodies, including Ajmer, Kota and Pali. The Congress had earlier sought reports on allegations of councillors being influenced or voting against party candidates. The party had also faced allegations from its own leaders concerning the handling of councillors during the process of forming civic bodies.

The inquiry committee will examine the circumstances surrounding these setbacks and the role of party leaders and councillors.

Another issue under discussion within the Rajasthan Congress is the Bhilwara controversy, where 17 Congress candidates were unable to contest with the party symbol after the required authority letters were not submitted on time. The issue created a major dispute within the local Congress organisation and reached the party's national leadership.

The Rajasthan High Court later dismissed petitions filed by the affected candidates, leaving 53 Congress-authorised candidates in the field. Congress leaders in Bhilwara have continued to raise questions over responsibility for the episode.

A recent protest by PCC member Manoj Paliwal outside the district Congress office again brought the issue into focus. Questions have also been raised over the role of senior local leaders Dhiraj Gurjar and Ramlal Jat.

The Congress had also alleged that its councillors were subjected to pressure, inducements and attempts to influence their voting during the post-election process. PCC chief Govind Singh Dotasra subsequently sought an inquiry by the State Election Commission into allegations involving the administration and police.

--IANS

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