Jaipur Lok Sabha candidates: Sitting MP locks horns with former female Mayor

The parliamentary constituency of Jaipur votes on May 6th. Will the BJP MP be able to win his seat a second time, even after a strong anti-incumbency wave cost his party the Assembly elections last year? His main rival: former mayor and Jaipur's first woman candidate in 48 years, fielded by the Congress.

The largest city of Rajasthan is the capital, ‘pink city’ Jaipur. Number 7 among the 25 parliamentary constituencies of the state, Jaipur is all set to go to polls on May 6th.

Jaipur parliamentary constituency comprises eight assembly constituencies: Hawa Mahal, Vidhyadhar Nagar, Civil Lines, Kishan Pole, Adarsh Nagar, Malviya Nagar, Sanganer and Bagru.

Jaipur is seen to be a BJP bastion, with the Congress winning this seat just thrice in the last 16 polls, since 1952. The BJP won the seat eight times. In 2014, the city had 19,57,820 electors, of which 1,047,468 were male and 910,350 were female. The total number of votes polled were 10,16,230.

[flexiblemap src=”http://data.opencity.in/Data/Rajasthan-Parliament-Constituency-Jaipur-Map-V-1.kml” width=”100%” height=”400px” ]

Note – Map for representation purpose | Source – http://datameet.org

The 2014 Lok Sabha elections

Candidate Party Number of votes Vote share (over votes polled)
Ram Charan Bohra BJP 8,63,358 66.58%
Mahesh Joshi INC 3,24,013 24.94%
Dr Virendra Singh AAP 55118 4.24%
D.K. Changani CPI 15597 1.2%

Source: ECI

The 2019 contest

This year, 41 candidates had filed nominations, of which 31 were accepted. Five were rejected and five withdrew nominations. Finally, 24  are contesting elections this time. Nine candidates represent political parties, while the remaining 15 are independent. Links to their affidavits and other details can be found towards the end of this article.

Know Your Candidates

  • Ram Charan Bohra, BJP

In 2014, critics had not expected it, but the BJP candidate was riding high and defeated his nearest rival, Mahesh Joshi of the INC, by a stunning margin that is considered the ‘largest ever‘ in the city.

Bohra is said to have a clean image, always maintains a low-key profile and is very accessible, according to voters. The 63-year-old started working in politics back in 1995, when he was elected Zila Pramukh for five years.

Pic credit: Facebook

  • Age: 61
  • Education: Higher Secondary Education Board, Rajasthan
  • Permanent address: F-21, Lotus Street Avenue – 4, Lal Bahadur Nagar West, J.L.N. Road, Jaipur-302017.
  • Tel : (0141) 2724444, 09829066531 (M)
  • Present address: 101-103, South Avenue,New Delhi-110011
  • Tel: (011) 23018552, 09829066531, 09013869343 (M)
  • Website: ramcharanbohra.com
  • Facebook
  • Twitter: @RamcharanBohra
  • Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/PratapSimhaOfficial
  • Email: ramcharanbohra@gmail.com
  • Criminal cases against him: None

Positions Held

1995 – 2000 Zila Pramukh, Jaipur
1 Sep. 2014 – 31 Aug. 2017: Member, Standing Committee on Urban Development
Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Railways
1 Sept. 2017 onwards: Member, Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture

Sources: National Portal of India

Assets and Liabilities

Year Assets Liabilities
2019 Rs 16,53,22,707

(Movable assets: 4,42,71,707
Immovable: 12,10,51,000)

Rs 2,30,38,900
2014 Rs 13,58,09,546

(Movable assets: 2,97,61,207

Immovable assets: 10,55,30,000)

Rs 2,38,71,000

Sources: MyNetainfo

MP Performance

In Parliament, his record shows an 88% attendance, which is the same as the state average. He attended 114 debates, against the state average of 138.7 and asked 317 questions against the state average of 390 questions in the House.

From his MPLAD funds, Bohra recommended work totalling Rs 26.03 crore, of which 70.16%% was utilised. He thus had an unspent balance of Rs 4.26 crore.  Having received Rs 3 crore from the former MP, Mahesh Joshi, he could use that along with his sanctioned amount of Rs 25 crore. The highest amount was spent for boring wells and laying water pipelines. Bagru, a rural area, received the largest sanctions.

Bohra also claims that he is the first MP of Jaipur who has spent around Rs 3-4 crore from MPLAD funds for  sanitation vehicles, jetting machines and more infrastructure facilities, including installation of tube-wells in regions that do not have adequate supply of water from Bisalpur dam. Check out the details here.

MP in news

Bohra’s electioneering violated the Model Code of Conduct, as he put up his party’s banners featuring photographs of jawans. The Jaipur MP also got a notice from the Returning Officer for a news item in a Hindi daily that seemed to look like paid news. If he did not explain, the RO said, the expenditure would be added to his account.

  • Jyoti Khandelwal, INC

After 48 years, a woman candidate is standing from Jaipur. The last time a woman contested was in 1971, when Gayatri Devi won from Jaipur for the third time.

Pic credit: Twitter

Jyoti Khandelwal was elected mayor of Jaipur Municipal Corporation in 2009. Hence, the Indian National Congress is this time fielding a former mayor.

  • Age: 44
  • Education: Ph.D (Political Ideas) from ISBM Mumbai in 2018
  • Profession: Coaching
  • Permanent address: 1031 Baba Harish Chandra Marg, Chandpole Bazar, Jaipur-302001.
  • Tel : 8875444000, 0141-2327604
  • Facebook
  • Twitter: @JprMayor
  • Email: mayorjail13@gmail.com
  • Criminal cases against her: None

Assets and Liabilities

Year Assets Liabilities
2019 Rs 79,59,622

(Movable assets: 79,59,622

Immovable: Nil)

Rs 21,50,000

Sources: MyNetainfo

Jyoti Khandelwal says that she is approachable and has a good rapport with the people. She is a ‘risky candidate’ for the party as a woman and a member of the Vaishya caste in a Brahmin-dominated community. But having defeated the BJP in the 2009 mayoral elections and having raised her voice against corruption in her own party members, Khandelwal has got some attention. Recently, she has been implicated in a sting operation, which has been sent for a forensic test.

Other candidates

The following is a list of all other candidates whose nominations have been accepted.

Candidate Party Symbol
Ram Charan Bohra, 61, 12th passed, Businessperson Bharatiya Janata Party Lotus
Jyoti Khandelwal, 44, PhD (Political ideas), Coaching Indian National Congress Hand
Umrao Salodia, 62, MA (Hindi), Pensioner Bahujan Samaj Party Elephant
Kuldeep Singh, 33, MA, Political Activist Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) Battery torch
Kailash Chand Jagarwal, 38, BA, Pvt Business Ambedkarite Party of India Coat
Bhanwar Lal Joshi , 45, BSc(Maths), Stock Broker Rashtriya Jansambhavna Party Cauliflower
Ram Sahay Meena Kalky, 67, MA (Eco), M.Com, Pensioner & Lawyer Peoples Party of India
(Democratic)
Basket containing
Fruits
Sanjay Garg , 54 , Diploma (Mechanical Engineering), Business Swarna Bharat Party Neck Tie
P. Trilok Tiwari, 58, 10th , Pvt Service Rashtriya Samta Vikas Party Trumpet
Kamal Bhargav ,33, 5th Pass, Business Independent Bat
Pankaj Patel , 29, M.Com, Business Independent Toffees
Prashant Saini, 37, MA, MBA, Private Independent Flute
Babita Wadhwani, 45, M.Com, M.Ed, Social Worker Independent Black Board
Manoj Kumar Joshi, 48, 12th Pass, Business Independent Ring
Yakub Khan, 47, Literate, Work of Gem Stone Independent Air Conditioner
Yogesh Sharma, 69, 9th Pass, Agriculture Labour Independent Auto- Rickshaw
Ram Charan Joshi, 37, LLB, Advocate Independent Helmet
Ram Janki Swami, 46, Literate, House Rent & Milk Seller Independent Apple
Ramlal Dhanaka, 62, Literate, Business Independent Almirah
Vinay Kumar Varma, 36, 12th Pass, Business Independent Diamond
Virad Singla, 26, BTech (Automobile Engineering), Business Independent Laptop
Sharad Chand Jain, 54, BSc (Maths), Broker-Business Independent Electric Pole
Shobhal Singh, 39, LLB, Housewife Independent Pen Nib with
Seven Rays
Haripal Bairwa, 50, 8th Pass, Govt Job Retired Independent Key

Two candidates have criminal cases against them. While the youngest candidate is 26, the oldest is 69, just a year short of becoming a septuagenarian. While the declared assets of two candidates are about Rs one lakh each, the highest assets of Rs 16 crore is shown by the sitting MP, Ram Charan Bohra. More details of the candidates can be found here.

Main issues in Jaipur

Jaipur voters have issues regarding sanitation and garbage collection mismanagement. While traffic congestion and water supply from mostly tankers at many places are creating problems for the residents, they complain that in the Swachh Bharat rankings, the city has fallen from 39 to 44.

Unemployment has been a major problem in the state which has over 6 lakh jobless people, with Jaipur district having the highest number in the state at 58893. This could well turn out to be a key factor in determining voting decisions, especially with a large voter base in the age group of 18-29.

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