Ploughing his farm in remote Varmandal village here, 55-year-old Kailash says he is well aware of the Congress government’s welfare initiatives for farmers but that does not guarantee that he will vote for the party in the upcoming Rajasthan assembly polls. He said, “The candidate should be approachable. This is the first thing I look for in a candidate before casting my vote.”
He claimed, “The Congress government gave mobile phones to women but not everyone got one and those who did not are disappointed. However, initiatives like the Chiranjeevi scheme, which provides a health insurance cover of Rs 25 lakh, have benefitted people.”
“It is difficult for people in this region to afford expensive treatment in private hospitals. In such a scenario, the Congress government’s work in the health sector is commendable,” he added.
Kailash isn’t the only one who thinks so in Varmandal, which comes under the Pratapgarh assembly constituency. There are others who also insist that candidates’ connection with voters will decide who gets their votes.
Another farmer, Banwari Sharma, said that more than the face of the chief minister, the face of the local candidate matters. He said, “People want MGNREGA work and the local MLA should stand by them in their time of need. Income sources are limited here. Men go to Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh to earn a livelihood while women work on farms. Resources are limited and if the MLA is accessible, people’s work is done easily. Therefore, they want a person who is easily approachable to be their MLA.” Sharma said people here have limited needs but want necessary things like road repair and other government-related work to be done easily.
Pratapgarh assembly constituency was a BJP bastion for many years before Congress’ Ramlal Meena defeated BJP candidate Hemant Meena, the son of six-time MLA and former minister Nandlal Meena, in the 2018 Rajasthan assembly elections. Nandlal Meena won the seat in 1980 and then regularly from 1993 to 2018. This time too, Ramlal Meena and Hemant Meena are pitted against each other. Ramlal Meena is confident that he will retain the seat.
“So much work has been done in Pratapgarh constituency in the last five years, including building colleges, state highways, a critical care ward in the district hospital, and new panchayat and SDM offices,” he said. In tribal areas, the Annapurna food packet scheme has been quite popular, he said.
“Skyrocketing inflation has put a heavy burden on the poor. People here have limited income and resources. When the government started the free food packet scheme, it received a huge response,” he said, exuding confidence that he would win the seat this time too. Hemant Meena alleged his Congress rival is steeped in corruption.
“Ramlal Meena only extorted money and did nothing else. I believe that the people will vote for the BJP this time and oust the Congress government,” he said.
Pratapgarh seat, reserved for Scheduled Tribes, has 2.57 lakh voters. It is one of the two assembly constituencies in Pratapgarh district, the other being Dhariawad.