Rajasthan Assembly Elections: Amit Shah's Call Helps BJP Candidate Rajyavardhan Rathore In Jhotwara

Rebel BJP leader and former Rajasthan minister Rajpal Singh Shekhawat withdrew his nomination from the Jhotwara assembly seat in Jaipur district for elections scheduled for 25 November after a call from Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

After BJP announced Jaipur Rural MP Rajyavardhan Rathore as its candidate here, Shekhawat decided to contest as an independent candidate. However, he withdrew his candidacy on the last day of the withdrawal deadline, Jagran reported.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, he said that it is necessary to defeat the Congress and so after a conversation with party leader Amit Shah on the phone, he has decided to withdraw his nomination. He said that it is more important to form a BJP government in the state.

Former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje's close confidant, Shekhawat, was the Minister of Urban Development and Housing in the government led by Raje in Rajasthan. Shekhawat had represented Jhotwara multiple times in assembly.

On the other hand, the incumbent Congress MLA from Jhotwara, Lal Chand Kataria, who is also a minister in the Ashok Gehlot cabinet decided not to contest. Hence, Congress has fielded NSUI's state president Abhishek Choudhary from here.

Jhotwara is an assembly constituency under Rajyavardhan Rathore's Lok Sabha constituency, which he has represented twice. He also led in Jhotwara both times, in 2014 and 2019. Shekhawat's withdrawal will help in preventing the BJP's vote split.