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Rajasthan Assembly Elections 2018: Jhalrapatan is just latest chapter in old feud

For over two decades, Raje has been fending off the singhs

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Vasundhara Raje and Manvendra Singh
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In the upcoming Assembly elections of Rajasthan, Jhalrapatan has emerged as the big-ticket contest where chief minister Vasundhara Raje faces her vocal opponent, Manvendra Singh. Singh has travelled from the sand dunes of Western Rajasthan to the green banks of Chambal river in Eastern Rajasthan, all in a bid to fight a battle that has for a better part of two decades, seen Raje emerge victorious continually.

The foundation for the battle was laid soon after Raje became chief minister, but Manvendra's father Jaswant Singh nursed ambitions for the chair. He began touring the state and gave his famous statement, "Jo phirega wo charega" (the one who roams around is the one who grazes).

As an effort to consolidate dissidents, on October 31, 2007, Jaswant Singh hosted an opium panchayat (riyan) in his ancestral village Jasol, that was attended by nine dissident BJP leaders, including four ministers of the Raje government's first cabinet. Pictures of the riyan got out, as did word that the exercise was to garner commitment to oust Raje. A case was registered under NDPC Act. The BJP leaders managed to get a clean chit, but relations soured beyond repair.

Subsequent years saw Jaswant's wife Kalu Baisa filing a case and issuing statements against Raje. 

After Jaswant Singh was denied a ticket in 2009 Parliamentary elections, his son Manvendra's wife Chitra Singh was an active Raje baiter, remnants of which were very visible when she was garnering support for her husband's Swabhiman Rally where he announced his departure from the BJP.

Consider this other aspect. Jaswant Singh had courted controversy when he met Peer Pagaro (a religious leader who holds considerable sway in border area muslims) during his 2006 trip to Pakistan. At the time, Jaswant Singh and Manvendra enjoyed support of Muslims who form a large share of their vote bank. 

Manvendra also managed to get a ticket to Lok Sabha as Vajpayee and Advani were still decision makers. "But, he wore an ajrak (a scarf associated with Muslims) while taking oath as MP from Barmer in 2009. This did not go well with the hardliners within the party and they extended support to Raje when Jaswant was denied ticket," said a BJP leader from Barmer.

Jaswant then fought the 2013 Lok Sabha election as an independent and lost. BJP also initiated action against Manvendra, but never actually got down to it. Jaswant Singh was taken ill and the mantle of the public battle with Raje was passed on to Manvendra.

In recent times, Raje and Manvendra had a meeting with the daughter of a Maharashtra politician acting as a mediator, which resulted in Manvendra getting elected as president of Rajasthan Football Association. But peace was short-lived and soon, Manvendra launched his battle for Swabhiman (self respect). Having left the BJP, he has now chosen to be the Congress candidate from Jhalrapatan to open the latest chapter of this ongoing feud.

RAJE RULES ROOST

2003 Congress fields Rama Pilot against Vasundhara Raje. Raje won by 22,375 votes.
2008 Cong experiments with Mohan Lal Rathore, a Rajput. Raje increases margin of victory.  
2013 Congress fields Meenakshi Chandravat, a Rajput, but Raje still wins by 60,896 votes.

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