Jaipur: Mayoral races across most of the state’s 10 municipal corporations began taking shape Wednesday – the last day for filing nominations for the post – as BJP, Congress and independent candidates filed their papers and set the stage for political manoeuvrings in civic bodies where neither BJP nor Congress has a clear majority.Indirect elections for mayoral posts are scheduled for Sept 21.In Alwar, BJP nominated Suman Lata Agrawal for the mayor’s post, while Congress put forward Kamlesh Sharma. Independent candidate Rinkle Garg, who lost the councillor election from Ward 36, also filed her papers.BJP has 28 councillors in the 65-member Alwar municipal corporation, while Congress has 23, with both parties falling short of the 33-seat majority mark.The political spotlight among mayoral races perhaps shone brightest on Bharatpur, home district of chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, where independents secured 36 of 65 wards in the just-concluded urban local body elections.BJP’s Anuradha Singh and independent councillor Vichitra Singh are both vying for the mayor’s office there, with the latter claiming support of the Congress. “We will surely form the governing board in Bharatpur municipal corporation,” she said while being flanked by her husband Shiv Singh Bhont, himself a former mayor.Anuradha Singh, whose candidacy was announced just a day before, also expressed confidence in winning the race, insisting she has the numbers necessary for victory.In Pali, the mayoral contest seemed headed for a multi-cornered contest. Here, Congress has put forward Sumitra Jain as its nominee, setting her up against BJP’s Namita Bubakia and independent councillor Rashida Bano.A total of ten nomination forms were submitted for the post of mayor here, a reflection of the fierce rivalry afoot in the race after Congress emerged as the single largest party, with 29 out of 65 wards, but fell short of the majority mark of 33.Congress rebel Rajbala Hingad is one of the ten to have filed nominations here.In Bhilwara, where BJP commands a comfortable majority after winning 45 out of 70 wards, the prospect of the city seeing its first female mayor has become a reality after the party nominated Jaswant Kanwar, a 37-year-old councillor who won from Ward 9. Independent Santosh Kanwar also filed papers here.In Bikaner, Congress’s Anil Kalla, nephew of former minister B D Kalla, has his sights set on the mayor’s office after the party secured a clear majority with 42 out of 80 wards. Despite falling short of the majority mark here, however, BJP seems intent on not quitting the fight after nominating Surendra Singh for the post and potentially setting up a contest where cross-voting could become a deciding factor.Udaipur and Ajmer also saw strategic nominations from both BJP and Congress.In Ajmer, BJP named Anamika Sharma as its candidate, while Congress chose Kiran Garhwal on the last day of nominations. Congress has 37 councillors in Ajmer against BJP’s 32, with the remaining 11 seats in the 80-member corporation being held by independents.In Udaipur, where internal differences were rife within the BJP, the party eventually nominated Paras Singhvi for the post of candidate.The mayoral nominations process is yet to commence in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Kota, where repolling was underway in certain wards of all three cities Wednesday.
