The welfare schemes of the Ashok Gehlot government are the big talking point in this Assembly election in Rajasthan, leading often to heated debates between those who have benefited from it and those left behind.
At a highway tea shop in Luni, near Jodhpur, septuagenarian Ganga Ram Bishnoi, in the midst of an animated discussion on poll prospects this election season, between sipping sweet tea from a tiny paper cup declares, “I got ₹40,000 compensation from the government when my cow died of lumpy disease.” This raises a howl of protest from Bhawra Ram, who complains about being left out. Many men flaunt the smartphones distributed by the State government to widows and girl students which now sit in their pockets. A few mutter about the inflated electricity bills, but their voices are drowned out by those lauding the government for giving 100 units for free. And there is unanimous appreciation for the Chiranjeevi Yojana — the State government’s universal medical insurance scheme that provides a cover of up to ₹25 lakh. Ask them who is winning the election, the BJP or the Congress and a multitude of voices and opinions rise. Again, Mr. Bishnoi, cutting through the noise, proclaims, “Humme Congress se koi matlab nahi hai, abki Ashok Gehlot ne kaam thik kiya hai. [We don’t care for the Congress, but this time Ashok Gehlot has done good work].”
His remarks almost mirror the Congress posters here. The election fever is yet to peak here. Among the few posters put up around the Jodhpur city, it is Chief Minister Ashok Ghelot’s face smiling down from bright pink billboards, along with State party president Govind Singh Dotasra, with the slogan, “Kaam Kiya Dil Se, Congress Phir Se”. The faces of Central leadership, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and the Gandhi family are accommodated into stamp size slots.
