With BJP MP-turned-Congress Candidate in Fray Against Paralympian, Churu Promises Heated Battle

New Delhi: This Lok Sabha elections, Churu parliamentary constituency is witnessing a heated battle between a BJP MP-turned Congress candidate and a Paralympian. Churu goes to polls in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections on April 19. The Churu seat in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan has been a BJP stronghold for the last 15 years with Kaswan family retaining the seat for the saffron party.

However, this time Kaswan has rebelled against the Bharatiya Janata Party. The BJP denied ticket to 2-time sitting MP from Churu Rahul Kaswan in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, and fielded 42-year-old is a double paralympic gold medallist javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia.

Rahul Kaswan Rebels, Makes Churu a Personal Battle

Rahul Kaswan was picked by the BJP as its Churu Lok Sabha candidate in 2014 Lok Sabha elections instead of his father Ram Singh Kaswan. Ram Singh Kaswan has turned Churu as a BJP bastion, and has represnted the Rajasthan seat from 1999 to 2009. He first won from Churu in 1991, but lost in 1996 and 1998 elections.

Rahul Kaswan won from Churu in both 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections. However, as he was denied ticket in this Lok Sabha elections, he rebelled and joined the Congress party. Within a day of Kaswan joining the Congress, the grand old party announced him as its candidate for Churu Lok Sabha candidate.

Upon joining Congress, Kaswan said that he was determined to work for the people of Churu. “I was feeling suffocated (in BJP) for a long time on various national issues. We were not being given the respect that a party worker deserves. This was a very big issue,” said Kaswan after joining Congress in presence of party's national president Mallikarjun Kharge. He had alleged that the rise of strong leaders is discouraged in the saffron party. 

Paralympian Devendra Jhajharia Relies on ‘Modi Factor’

After being fielded by BJP, Devendra Jhajharia said that he was confident of victory. "I made my debut in the 2004 Paralympics in Athens by winning a gold with a world record and am confident of registering a historic victory with my debut in politics as well," said Jhajharia.

Jhajharia said that he was not nervous about his "turncoat rival" Rahul Kaswan, despite Churu being a Kaswan family stronghold. “In 2009, BJP won in Churu by around 12,000 votes. In the 'Modi wave' of 2014, the victory margin was around 3 lakh and in 2019 the victory margin was 3.34 lakh because of the prime minister's charisma. This time, this difference can go up to 5 lakh,” said Jhajharia. 

"As far as the voters of Churu are concerned, (Narendra) Modi's name is a guarantee of victory. Voters only know that Modi has to be brought back in power and the lotus symbol means Modi," said the BJP candidate. 

Understanding Churu's ‘Personal’ Battle

The battle of Churu is more of Rahul Kaswan versus former BJP Churu MLA Rajendra Rathore instead of Kaswan versus Jhajharia. Rathore and Kaswan's father began together, while Rathore remained in the state, he reportedly advised Ram Singh to contest general elections. However, over the years, differences have emerged between the two leaders and their families, with Rahul Kaswan accusing Rathore of trying to sabotage his political career. 

During his rally in Churu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi garnered support for BJP's candidate Devendra Jhajharia, but the battle still seems to be between the Jats and the Rajputs. Kaswan belongs to the numerically stronger Jat community while Rathore is a Rajput. On being asked, BJP candidate Jhajharia said, "I do not talk about caste at all. I am a player and have been taught to put India first. I consider every Indian as my brother... keeping the tricolour high is priority."