New Dynamics and Challenges in Rajasthan’s Politics

Determinants of Rajasthan Politics:

  1. Caste-based Politics: Caste influences ticket distribution, political appointments, and voter behavior. Initially dominated by Rajputs and Jats, other castes like Gurjar, Meena, Meghwal etc  gained prominence after 1970.
  2. The anti-incumbency factor has played a major role in the alternating power shifts between the Congress and BJP over the last 25 years.
  3. Absence of State Political Parties : National parties – BJP and Congress have overshadowed regional parties.
  4. Primacy of Groups: Factionalism within Congress (Vyas vs Sukhadiya, Gehlot vs Pilot) and BJP (Shekhawat vs Harishankar Bhabhda) is notable.
  5. Defection Politics: Used by leaders like ML Sukhadiya, BS Bhairosingh, and Ashok Gehlot to gain power.
  6. Independent MLAs played crucial roles in the rising of figures like M.L. Sukhadiya, B.S. Shekhawat, and Ashok Gehlot to the position of Chief Minister.
  7. Impact of Feudalism: Evident in the early post-independence period (formation of Swatantra party, Ram rajya parishad).The use of titles like Maharani for Diya Kumari and Vasundhara Raje indicates a feudalistic mentality.
  8. Local Issues: Parties address concerns such as ERCP, paper leaks, water crisis, women’s security, and farm loans.

The Emergency imposed in India from 25th June 1975 to 21st March 1977 was a period that deeply affected national as well as state-level politics. Rajasthan, which was under Congress rule at the time, was significantly impacted. 

Impact of Emergency (1975–77) on Rajasthan’s political trajectory:

  1. Political Suppression and Decline of Opposition: During the Emergency, the Rajasthan government, following directives from the Centre, suppressed opposition leaders, activists, and protestors.
    • Many individuals associated with Jana Sangh, Socialist leaders, and RSS were arrested or detained.
    • With press censorship in place, democratic discourse was stifled.
  2. Congress Dominance: Congress’s influence in Rajasthan peaked during this time.
    • The then Congress-led Chief Ministers like Haridev Joshi and later Jagannath Pahadia strictly followed Indira Gandhi’s commands.
    • The administration came under direct Congress control, leading to the implementation of one-sided policies.
  3. Implementation of Sanjay Gandhi’s Programs
    • Under Sanjay Gandhi’s Five-Point Program, aggressive implementation of family planning (sterilization), urban cleanliness, and town development was seen in Rajasthan.
    • Forced execution of these policies led to widespread public resentment, especially among rural and poor communities.
  4. Public Discontent and Opposition Reorganization
    • Due to political suppression and unpopular policies, public dissatisfaction grew.
    • Opposition parties united under the Janata Party, and many regional leaders from Rajasthan played a key role (such as Bhairon Singh Shekhawat).
  5. Defeat of Congress in the 1977 Elections
    • After the Emergency ended, Congress suffered a major defeat in the 1977 general elections in Rajasthan.
    • The Janata Party won 21 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
    • In the state assembly elections, Congress lost and Bhairon Singh Shekhawat became the head of the first non-Congress government in Rajasthan.

Conclusion:

During the Emergency, Rajasthan’s political direction turned towards centralized authoritarianism, but the resulting public unrest changed the state’s politics significantly. It led to the expansion of democratic awareness, strengthening of the opposition, and the emergence of political alternatives, ultimately making the state’s politics more competitive and multiparty.

Over the past twenty years (approximately from 2000 to 2020), Rajasthan has witnessed significant changes in its political demography. These changes have greatly influenced the state’s electoral politics, voter behavior, and the strategies of political parties.

  1. Shifts in Caste Equations
    • Traditionally, Rajasthan’s politics revolved around caste groups like Jats, Rajputs, Brahmins, and Dalits.
    • In recent years, the political participation and influence of OBC communities (especially Gujjars and Meenas) have grown.
    • Caste-based movements (like the Gujjar reservation agitation) have sparked new political awareness and polarization.
  2. Urbanization and Rise of the Middle Class
    • With the growth of urban voters and a digitally literate youth population, political issues have shifted.
    • Topics such as development, employment, education, and corruption have started to outweigh traditional caste-based concerns.
  3. Increased Participation of Women
    • Women have become more politically active, especially in Panchayati Raj and local bodies.
    • The female voter turnout now matches or even exceeds that of men in many areas.
  4. Change in Political Party Strategies
    • Major parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian National Congress (INC) have increasingly focused on caste balancing, youth leadership, and digital campaigning.
    • While regional parties have had limited influence, independent candidates and local influential leaders have started playing decisive roles.
  5. Role of Nomadic and Minority Communities
    • Traditionally marginalized groups (such as Muslims, Bhils, Gadia Lohars, etc.) have also developed political consciousness, and their voting behavior has become more organized and assertive.

Conclusion: 

The political demography of Rajasthan has become more diverse, aware, and issue-based. Though caste and religion still influence politics, concerns related to development, education, and youth aspirations are now steering it in a new direction.

Political funding refers to the financial contributions provided to political parties or candidates to support their activities, campaigns, and overall functioning.

To meet rising party expenditures for elections, parties often rely on following resources:

  • Individual Persons: Section 29B of RPA allows individuals to donate to political parties with a 100% tax deduction.
  • State/Public Funding: In India, indirect funding methods like media access and transport subsidies are permitted, while direct funding is prohibited.
  • Corporate Funding: Governed by Section 182 of the Companies Act, 2013, corporations can donate to political parties.
  • Electoral Bonds Scheme: Introduced in 2017, electoral bonds facilitate anonymous donations to registered political parties.
  • Electoral Trusts Scheme, 2013: Governed by CBDT, Electoral Trusts distribute contributions from companies and individuals to political parties.
  • Other sources include cheques, sale of coupons, crowd-funding etc.

However, these mechanisms negatively affect the free and fair election process in India.

  1. Flow of black money : The absence of disclosure mandates for donations below ₹20,000 enables parties to rely on cash donors. This constitutes about 75% of income for six major national parties, contributing to the flow of black money. 

(while donations reported by some political parties were nil, their audited accounts statement showed receipt of huge amounts, proving large-scale transactions in cash, below the threshold limit of Rs 20,000.)

  1. Anonymous Donations:  unknown sources include ‘donations via Electoral Bonds’, ‘sale of coupons’, ‘relief fund’, ‘miscellaneous income’, ‘voluntary contributions’, and ‘contributions from meetings/morchas’. The details of voluntary contributions from such donors are not available in the public domain.
  2. Foreign Donations : At present, no foreign donations are allowed under the RP Act and the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), 2010. However, there is no mechanism to segregate foreign donations at the initial stages. 
  3. Crony capitalism: The removal of the 7.5% profit limit enables companies to donate 100% of profits to political parties, potentially fueling crony capitalism.
  4. Transition to Opaque Electoral Bond Mechanisms: Recently the Supreme Court struck down the amendments to Section 29C of the RP Act, Section 182(3) of the Companies Act and Section 13A(b) of the Income Tax for violating “the right to information of citizens guaranteed in Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.” 

Reforms needed: 

  1. State Funding of Elections:Indrajit Gupta Committee supports partial state funding of recognized political parties.
  2. National Electoral Fund  : as an alternative to electoral bonds, enabling donor contributions and allocation to parties based on votes received. 
  3. Acceptance of Law Commission’s recommendations (255th Report) on electoral finance 
  4. Audit of Political Parties: Venkatachaliah Committee Report (2002) has recommended strict regulatory frameworks for auditing and disclosure of party income and expenditure.
  5. Learn from global best practices: France has banned all forms of corporate funding in 1995 and capped individual donations at 6,000 Euros. 
  6. Stricter regulations on corporate donations, especially from loss-making companies
  7. ECI recommendations
    • Disclosure of Anonymous Donations: Mandate reporting of all donations above Rs 2,000 to enhance transparency.
    • Digital or Cheque Transactions: Make digital transactions or cheque transfers mandatory for expenses exceeding Rs 2,000 to a single entity/person.
    • Limit Cash Donations: Restrict cash donations to 20% or a maximum of Rs 20 crore out of total funds received by a party, whichever is lower.
    • Separate Bank Account: Require every fielding candidate to open a separate bank account for election purposes and channel all expenses and receipts through this account.
    • Segregate Foreign Donations: Implement electoral reforms to prevent foreign donations from entering party funds in accordance with RP Act and FCRA, 2010.

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