"Here not only the Congress, BJP workers too vote for Gehlot," said Hardev Ram Bishnoi in Sardarpura constituency, a long-standing bastion of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
"In Sardarpura, we vote for the Chief Minister and not just an MLA," Mr. Bishnoi added, confident of a sixth encore by Mr. Gehlot in the coming State polls.
Mr. Bishnoi is not the only one to hold fast the belief that Mr. Gehlot is invincible from the constituency. The narrow, quaint lanes, though well-lit, of Mahamandir area where he sits, teem with his supporters.
Mr. Bishnoi was found chatting with a group of friends for 'hatai,' a daily meeting point for people in the neighbourhood for evening discussions and game of cards. The group sitting in the fading light was unanimous in its opinion.
Surendra Bhati, another man from the group, lauded the development work done in Jodhpur and the schemes of the Gehlot government. "Over the years, Jodhpur has got top institutes such as AIIMS, IIT, NIFT, a law university … better roads and infrastructure." Jodhpur is long known by one man and it is Ashok Gehlot. He represented the Jodhpur Lok Sabha seat five times between 1980 and 1998 before switching to state politics. Since then, he has gone on to become MLA from Sardarpura five times and Chief Minister of Rajasthan thrice.
For the past two Lok Sabha elections, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has been representing the Jodhpur seat, but when it comes to Sardarpur Assembly, Mr. Gehlot's influence is clear. His margin of victory since 2008 has increased with every Assembly election.
In 2008, he beat the BJP candidate, his closest rival, by more than 15,000 votes, which increased to 18,478 votes in 2013, and to a historic high of 45,597 in 2018.
Rajasthan Assembly polls this year are due on November 25 and counting of votes will take place on December 3.
In Sardarpura, political debates are confined to Mr. Gehlot, his welfare work, and above all the pride people of Sardarpura get for giving the State its CM.
When asked about Mr. Gehlot's absence from constituency being also a CM, Jagdish Kumar said, "No work ever stops here. The Chief Minister looks after the issues of his constituency. He has to look after an entire State. His schemes such as Chiranjeevi health insurance to inflation relief camps have done a lot for the people." Just where Sardarpura constituency begins, a gathering of BJP workers, deep in their discussion of local challenges, disagreed with the other group, and said the fight will be tough for the Congress.
The supporters of the political party said the condition of roads and sewer system is in a bad shape in the area and Mahendra Singh Rathore, the BJP candidate, will be a victor.
"BJP has done solid work over the past few years. Mahendra Singh Rathore is a fresh candidate and he has proven his mettle doing work as a chairperson of Jodhpur Development Authority," said BJP councillor Ashok Khinchi.
When asked who will win, Ashok Gehlot or Mahendra Singh, Mr. Khinchi with a mischievous smile said, "Mahendra Rathore."
