Jaipur Mayor election: BJP’s Kothari to contest against Cong’s Mahawar

Jaipur: The political contest for the Jaipur Municipal Corporation Mayoral post has taken shape, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) naming Sunil Kothari and the Congress fielding Sunita Mahawar.

Kothari, a former Jaipur City BJP President and newly elected Councillor from Ward-112, filed his nomination on Saturday. Mahawar, a Congress Councillor from Ward-118, has also entered the political fray.

The BJP has 78 Councillors in the 150-member corporation, while the Congress has 57 and Independents hold 15 seats. The Mayoral election is scheduled for September 25, with voting from 10 am to 2 pm if the contest remains after the withdrawal process.

The BJP finalised Kothari’s candidature after internal consultations. He filed his nomination at the Jaipur Municipal Corporation headquarters, accompanied by senior party leaders. Kothari has been associated with the BJP for several decades and has held various organisational positions, including Jaipur City BJP president.

Kothari defeated Congress candidate Ashish Sharma by 905 votes in Ward-112. His election affidavit reportedly puts his movable and immovable assets at around Rs 35.87 crore. The Congress has fielded Sunita Mahawar, a long-time party worker with experience in Jaipur municipal politics. Associated with the Adarsh Nagar area, she is considered close to Congress MLA Rafeek Khan.

The Congress is seeking support beyond its councillor group. Khan has claimed that some BJP councillors are in contact with the Congress, though the claim has not been independently verified.

Following the September 17 repoll, the final tally is BJP 78, Congress 57 and Independents 15. Congress won all four repolled wards, increasing its tally from 53 to 57. While the BJP has a majority, the 15 Independents could remain politically significant in the mayoral vote.

Nominations were accepted on September 18 and 19, scrutiny is scheduled for September 21 and withdrawal closes on September 22. The focus now shifts to scrutiny, withdrawal and efforts by both parties to consolidate support ahead of the September 25 vote.

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The Hans India