Voting began in 199 out of 200 assembly seats in Rajasthan on Saturday morning after days of intense campaigning by major political parties including the ruling Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In the Karanpur constituency, elections were adjourned due to the passing of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Koonar.
The polling began at 7 am this morning and will continue till 6 pm. A total of 51,507 polling booths have been set up across the state.
There are 5,25,38,105 voters in the 199 assembly constituencies.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot (Sardarpura), former chief minister Vasundhara Raje (Jhalrapatan), former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot (Tonk), state PCC chief Govind Singh Dotasra (Lachhmangarh), RLP convenor Hanuman Beniwal (Khinvsar) are some of the key faces among the 1,862 candidates in the fray.
Reportedly, more than 1.70 lakh security personnel have been deployed across the state to ensure peaceful elections.
According to a PTI report, 70,000 Rajasthan Police personnel, 18,000 Rajasthan Home Guards, 2,000 Rajasthan Border Home Guards, 15,000 Home Guards of other states (Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh), 120 RAC Companies have been deployed for the day.
While the ruling Congress is hoping that it will retain its government in Rajasthan, opposition party BJP is eyeing a return in the state ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha elections next year.
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Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X and urged voters in Rajasthan to come up in large numbers. “Voting will be held today for Rajasthan Assembly elections. I request all the voters to create a new record of voting by exercising their franchise in maximum numbers. On this occasion, my best wishes to all the young friends of the state who are going to vote for the first time,” he said.
The counting of votes will be taken up on December 3.
