Jaipur: BJP has returned to power in Jaipur Municipal Corporation, but its victory is thinner than the headline number suggests.In the 150-member corporation, where the majority mark is 76, BJP won 78 wards — just two above the halfway mark. Congress secured 53 seats and independents won 15. Repolling has been ordered in four wards — 18, 9, 25 and 34 — leaving the final tally open at the margins, though not enough to threaten BJP’s control.The result points to a more competitive urban map after delimitation, with independents cutting into both parties’ space and shaping outcomes in several wards.BJP’s margin has turned out to be slimmer than its earlier position in the areas that made up JMC Greater, covering Vidhyadhar Nagar, Jhotwara, Sanganer, Bagru and Malviya Nagar Assembly segments.In 2020, BJP won 88 of the 150 seats in JMC Greater. After delimitation, these areas were reorganised into 87 wards, of which BJP won 49. Its share dropped from about 59% in 2020 to 56% this time.Congress also slipped in these areas, from roughly 33% in 2020 to 30% now. Independents gained ground proportionately, winning seven of the 87 wards, compared with 10 of the earlier 150.The sharper shift came in areas that were earlier part of JMC Heritage, covering three assembly constituencies represented by Congress MLAs. In 2020, Congress led here with 47 of 100 seats, ahead of BJP’s 42, while independents had won 11.After delimitation, these areas account for 63 wards. BJP won 29, or 46.03%, while Congress secured 26, or about 41%. Independents won eight wards, raising their share to nearly 12%.Congress workers said the party lost several winnable wards because independents split its vote, especially in Congress-leaning and minority-dominated pockets.“Independents blocked Congress candidates in several such wards, giving BJP a clear route to a majority. For BJP, the win is real, but delimitation and rebel-backed independents have exposed thinner ground across key urban Assembly belts ahead of future civic battles,” veteran Congress worker Iqbal Qureshi said.
