BJP's Vasundhara Raje does balancing act on castes

NEW DELHI: The BJP has tried to reconcile the aspirations of all dominant castes in Rajasthan in its first list of 176 candidates for the upcoming assembly elections. The party’s chief ministerial candidate Vasundhara Raje has sent out a strong message to the Jat community, into which she is married, by giving its members about 25 seats and an equal number of tickets to Rajputs.

The party has sensed an opportunity after the communal clashes in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar, believing that Jats can swing back towards the BJP after switching loyalties to back the Congress in the previous elections.

However, it has refrained from fielding known Jat leaders such as Gyan Prakash Pilania, whose son was given a ticket last time, Rajya Sabha member Hari Singh and Vijay Punia, whose wife was the party candidate in 2008. This has apparently been done in view of the sensitivities of the other communities.

Belying apprehensions that Raje’s tussle with Ghanshyam Tiwari, who had opposed her ascension in the state party, could spell fewer tickets to Brahmins, the party has given tickets to 15 Brahmin candidates in the first list itself.