Gehlot’s son visits Jalore, may be fielded by Cong in LS polls
: Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot’s son, Vaibhav Gehlot, is likely to contest from the Jalore Lok Sabha constituency in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, said those familiar with the development. Ahead of the announcement of the ticket, Vaibhav visited Jalore on Monday for two days to assess the ground situation. There, Vaibhav met party office bearers, local Congress representatives, and leaders, as well as prominent figures from the region. Prominent Congress leaders like Pukhraj Parashar, Ramila Meghwal, Saroj Choudhary and many others were present with him.
Vaibhav contested his first Lok Sabha election from his hometown, Jodhpur, in 2019. Despite the Congress being in power in the state at that time, Vaibhav lost to Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Gajendra Singh by approximately 2.74 lakh votes.
Though the Congress is yet to announce its candidates, BJP had already declared the candidate for Jalore on March 2. Instead of three-time MP Devji Patel, the party has chosen Lumbaram Choudhary to contest from the constituency.
Those familiar with the development
said, during the two-day visit to Jalore, Vaibhav met the party workers and discussed with them about the party strategy for the upcoming elections. He sought input from party leaders on various strategies to secure victory in the Jalore-Sirohi seat. Vaibhav also interacted with members of the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community at a private hotel. He also visited several temples and sought blessings from revered sages and saints.
Besides eying Jalore, Vaibhav is also exploring possibilities at Jodhpur parliamentary constituency, said party insiders, adding that the former CM has called leaders of Jalore and Jodhpur at his Jaipur residence to take feedback on Vaibhav’s candidature.
The Jalore-Sirohi seat has witnessed
17 Lok Sabha elections, with most of the MPs being outsiders. Only three local leaders Virdaram Phulwaria of Congress in 1980, Parasaram Meghwal of Congress in 1996, and in the 2009, 2014, and 2019 BJP’s Devji Patel represented this seat.
A look at the Jalore Lok Sabha seat revealed that Congress leader Sardar Buta Singh represented this seat four times in 1984, 1991, 1998, and 1999. Meanwhile, BJP’s Kailash Meghwal won in 1989, and BJP’s Sushila Bangaru won in 2004. Earlier, in 1952, independent MP Bhavani Singh, in 1957, Congress leader Suraj Ratan Damami, in 1962, Congress leader Harish Chandra Mathur, in 1967, and Swatantra Party’s DN Patodiya, in 1971 represented this seat.