Rajasthan BJP eyes two Rajya Sabha berths when it has numbers for one

JAIPUR: Rajasthan BJP is gearing up for the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled on June 19. The saffron party has fielded two candidates while it has numbers to ensure the victory of just one candidate.
The party has fielded former minister Rajendra Gehlot and had surprised everyone by announcing the name of former state president Onkar Singh Lakhawat at the eleventh hour in March. The elections were postponed due to the Covid-19 situation in the state which did not deter the party from changing its stand on fielding the second candidate.
Exuding confidence over the victory of both candidates, Satish Poonia, state president, BJP, said the first 51 MLAs will cast their votes for the party’s first preference Gehlot, while the rest 24 will go with our second candidate Lakhawat. “We have already made an appeal to the independent lawmakers and those from other parties who feel that the Gehlot government has failed to deliver on all fronts, to support our second candidate,” Poonia said over phone.
The saffron party has 72 lawmakers and has support from three lawmakers from Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) of Hanuman Beniwal. The Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP) with two MLAs has neither extended support to the Congress nor BJP.
“The party is hopeful that they will receive some support from the independents who extended support to the Congress. Some of them have expressed unhappiness with the party for not providing them positions and portfolios as promised during their inclusion,” said a source. Meanwhile, the BJP is not leaving any stone to ensure the victory of both the candidates. The party will call a training session on voting in the RS polls to ensure no room for any error.
Sources said that fielding of a second candidate is a way for the BJP to acknowledge the older worker.