Jaipur: As the Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) elections loom on Sept 11, BJP’s Jaipur city unit is actively preparing panels of three potential candidates for each municipal ward. The final list of ticket aspirants will be presented to the party’s state-level screening committee, which is expected to finalise the candidates shortly.Starting Thursday, candidates will be able to begin filing their nominations for the much-awaited polls. According to sources within the party, several senior BJP figures have thrown their hats into the ring, including former Jaipur city presidents Sanjay Jain and Shailendra Bhargava, alongside former state vice-president Sunil Kothari.The ticket race has garnered attention, especially with some politicians making the transition from Congress to BJP. Among these aspirants, several are applying not just for themselves but also for their family members.
Queue outside BJP state president Madan Rathore’s office at the BJP HQ ahead of municipal polls in Jaipur, Rajasthan on 26 August 2026
The competitive atmosphere has notably sparked interest in Baran’s Atru municipality, which will be going to local elections for the first time. Education Minister Madan Dilawar’s son, Pawan Dilawar, and brother, Krishnamurari Dilawar, are both vying for the BJP ticket from ward 5, adding to the high-stakes nature of the selection process.One of the BJP Jaipur division in-charges commented on the screening process, saying, “The party is currently checking whether the applicants are BJP members on the day they submitted their applications. Such people also have the right to apply. If required, the party can consider their names as well.”A senior BJP member indicated that the candidate lists could be announced anytime soon as many in-charges across the state have already submitted their panels of probable candidates to the screening committee.The selection process takes place against a backdrop of increased representation for women in civic polls, with nearly 3,356 out of 10,245 municipal wards across 309 urban local bodies in Rajasthan reserved for female candidates.
