Rajasthan recorded 80.2% voter turnout in the first phase of its panchayat elections on Saturday, while violence, allegations of fake voting and a boycott over delimitation disrupted polling and counting in several districts. The phase covered elections for 3,314 sarpanch and 28,682 ward panch posts across 16 districts, with votes cast on paper ballots.
Counting began soon after polling ended and was expected to continue into the night. Officials were scheduled to count ward panch votes first, followed by votes for sarpanch candidates, with results expected late Saturday night. Jaipur district recorded a higher turnout of 86.5% by the close of polling.
The most serious incident was reported at Morija gram panchayat in Chomu, where an additional superintendent of police was injured and eight people were detained after violence broke out during counting. Police said a polling agent allegedly spread a rumour that ballot boxes were being replaced, prompting villagers to gather at the counting venue.
The crowd later pelted police personnel with stones, forcing officers to use a lathi-charge to disperse them. Police teams from Samod and nearby areas were sent to the location, and officials said the situation was brought under control. Counting was expected to continue under close administrative supervision.
The election process also saw clashes and protests elsewhere. In the Nagauri Mohalla area of Maujambad in Jaipur, two groups carrying sticks and clubs reportedly clashed over a ward panch seat before police intervened. In Bikaner, police used a mild lathi-charge after a large crowd moved towards a polling centre near Devikund Sagar in Ridmalsar Purohitan during the final stage of voting.
Allegations of fake voting triggered protests at polling booths in Bhilwara, although details of the specific allegations were not immediately available. In Alwar’s Rajgarh, sarpanch candidate Rajendra Meena staged a dharna alleging that about 100 fake votes had been cast. He demanded a re-poll and an FIR against a policeman.
A separate dispute over the delimitation of village boundaries led to a voting boycott in Duthariya village of Pali’s Rani panchayat. Residents objected to the village being merged with Itandra Medtiyan, alleging that the change had created connectivity problems because there was no direct road between the two villages. They were also reported to have boycotted elections for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members earlier in the week.
In Udaipur’s Bhindar Panchayat Samiti, a sarpanch candidate alleged that members of a rival group assaulted him on Friday night. The report also recorded police intervention after tension developed at other polling locations.
Unlike the previous panchayat elections, which used electronic voting machines, voters in this phase cast paper ballots. Each voter had to cast two votes: one for sarpanch and another for ward panch. State Election Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh visited polling booths in five gram panchayats under Chomu panchayat samiti and two under Govindgarh panchayat samiti to review arrangements. Authorities said counting would proceed under administrative monitoring.
