The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party registered a lead in the elections to panchayat bodies in 21 districts of Rajasthan on Tuesday, winning 1,824 seats in Panchayat Samitis and 200 in Zila Parishads. The ruling Congress won 1,710 Panchayat Samiti and 138 Zila Parishad seats.
The polling was held in four phases, on November 23, 27, December 1 and 5, to elect 4,371 members of Panchayat Samitis and 636 members of Zila Parishads. Counting of votes was continuing till late evening.
The Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, an ally of the BJP which fought the elections independently, bagged 56 Panchayat Samiti and seven Zila Parishad seats.
As many as 418 independent candidates and three Bahujan Samaj Party and 16 CPI(M) candidates also won the Panchayat Samiti member seats. Independent candidates are likely to hold the key to the formation of boards in a large number of Panchayat Samitis.
