In desert country, a 26-yr-old ‘reel neta’ rises to challenge BJP, Congress

Son of a government school teacher, the 26-year-old is among the youngest aspirants in the 2024 general elections. He is contesting from Barmer, Rajasthan, as an independent candidate. The Barmer seat, located in western Rajasthan, is the second largest Parliamentary constituency in India, after Ladakh. Spanning over 71,000 sq. km—an area larger than Sri Lanka—it is spread across Barmer and Jaisalmer districts of the state. The constituency is also a part of the famous Thar desert which spills over to neighbouring Pakistan.

On a hot summer afternoon, the highways running through Barmer evoked a sense of isolation—drive for miles without a soul in sight. This could be the setting of a noir film. Or lull a traveller into a meditative journey inward. But not when Bhati is around. When his convoy rushed into hamlets like a superstars’ on a road trip, silence gave way to chaos.

Bhati seems to have captured the imagination of the youth in one of the most backward districts of India. Here, poverty is palpable, water is scarce and migrating to states like Gujarat and Maharashtra in search of work is the route to survival for many. This is despite the presence of large projects like the oil fields of Vedanta Ltd, a lignite-based power plant of JSW Energy, and an upcoming ₹72,000 crore refinery and petrochemical complex jointly owned by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd and the Rajasthan government. Plus, numerous stone quarries.

Bhati’s opponents scornfully termed him a social media construct. The former president of Jodhpur University student’s union and currently an independent legislator of the state assembly from Sheo, Barmer, he has a following of 2.3 million on Instagram. That is more than the eligible voters in Barmer constituency (2.2 million).

There is little doubt that Bhati, coming from a family without any past political lineage, has pushed voters to think beyond conventional choices. Be it the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), which runs both the state and the federal government at present, or the opposition Indian National Congress, which ran the state government until recently.

Yet, 26 April will not be a cakewalk for Bhati when Barmer votes in the second phase of the seven-phase general elections. In a state where caste identities are a determining factor, an upper caste Rajput leader (Bhati) cannot hope to win without the support of scheduled caste Meghwals, tribal Bhils, and minority Muslims. So, Bhati is courting everyone, including archrival Jats.

Issues like unemployment are important factors. But they may not translate into votes against the incumbent.
—Sanjay Lodha

Jats, traditional agriculturalists, and Rajputs, erstwhile rulers, literally meaning son-of-a-king, are dominant castes here.

As Barmer readies for an economic makeover thanks to the upcoming refinery, these elections are also a turf war to corner economic opportunities, across real estate, transport, and hospitality sectors.

“Issues like unemployment and price rise are important factors, both in Rajasthan and other parts of India. But these concerns are always in circulation and may not really translate into votes against the incumbent,” said Sanjay Lodha, political scientist and former professor at Mohan Lal Sukhadia University, Udaipur.

In this forlorn country bordering Pakistan, national security and water scarcity are also potent election issues. As Bhati said in one of his election speeches: a couple of tube wells, who gets it and on whose recommendation, can quickly turn into an epic war like the Mahabharata.

The cop’s charge

Barmer is one of the 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in Rajasthan. In the last general elections held in 2019, BJP and its ally swept the state. The alliance won all seats as a Modi-wave gripped large parts of northern-India following the Balakot airstrikes when Indian airplanes struck terror camps inside Pakistan territory in February that year.

2024 is another story. Modi is still very popular, but political observers say the opposition INDIA alliance led by the Congress, has put up a tough fight. INDIA, a wobbly coalition of more than 40 political parties, is an acronym for Indian National Development Inclusive Alliance.

In Rajasthan, several seats where BJP won by wide margins in 2019 will see a close contest, said Sanjay Lodha, the political scientist quoted earlier. “The Prime Minister visited the state seven-eight times in the past few months. Yet, enthusiasm among voters is missing. Which is why the turnout during the first phase was significantly lower compared to the assembly elections held just four months back,” he said.

On 19 April, polling took place in 12 seats in Rajasthan. The turnout was 57.3%, lower than the 63.7% seen in the previous Lok Sabha election (2019) in the state, according to data from the Election Commission of India. Last November, the state assembly elections witnessed heavy polling (74.6%).

In Barmer, Ravindra Bhati is pitted against Congress’ Ummeda Ram Beniwal, a former constable of Delhi police and a local entrepreneur exporting handcrafted furniture. Kailash Choudhary from BJP, the sitting Member of Parliament (MP), and junior agriculture minister in the Modi government, is the other candidate, making it a three-cornered contest.

The demeanour of Beniwal, a local Jat, is a sharp contrast to the infectious energy of Bhati. During an early morning conversation, Beniwal spoke with long pauses. Calm and confident, unperturbed by the storm kicked up by Bhati.

Improving local schools is my top priority, he said. What else? Ensuring jobs for sons-of-the-soil in local industries and using the rural employment guarantee scheme to construct water harvesting and storage facilities. “The Centre is publicizing its Jal Jeevan Mission (which aims to provide potable tap water connections to all rural families). But here, where the nal (tap) has reached, jal (water) has not,” he said.

Beniwal brushes aside Bhati’s popularity by calling him a ‘reel neta’, a leader feeding into the obsession with social media, but one who only represents Rajput interests.

Unrequited love

Mint joined Bhati on one of his campaign trails in Pachpadra, close to the upcoming refinery. Between pit stops in villages on the route, Bhati spoke without a pause, almost never having to think before answering a question. His campaign pitch matches Beniwal’s to a tee—jobs for local youth, access to water, education. The difference is in choice of words and energy levels.

“It is said that Barmer will become a Dubai (with the new refinery)…but look at the condition of the youth. They are taking to crime and addiction,” Bhati said.

So, are these elections centered on economic issues or will caste affiliations decide the results? “Somebody had to come forward and break these equations. Who but someone young like me can take that risk?”

Bhati agrees he is ideologically aligned with BJP. But the realities of electoral politics have pushed him to flaunt his secular credentials.

During his university days, Bhati was a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), a right-wing student body affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological parent of BJP. But ABVP did not give him a ticket to contest the university polls. So, Bhati contested as an independent and won. Last year, just before the state assembly elections in Rajasthan, Bhati joined BJP. Again, the party did not give him a ticket. So, Bhati contested as an independent and won. Four months later, he took the plunge and joined the race to represent Barmer in Delhi.

All this sounds like a story of unrequited love. Bhati too agrees he is ideologically aligned with BJP. But the realities of electoral politics have pushed him to flaunt his secular credentials and court Muslims who comprise about 11% of the population of Barmer. “We have a relationship of brotherhood with Muslims for seven generations…my life is dedicated to preserving this harmony,” he said.

But Bhati does not have an unblemished record, points out Uda Ram Meghwal, a Dalit leader from Barmer who has been both with BJP and Congress in the past. “Bhati speaks for his own samaj (community), not for everyone…some fear his language of dominance. When a Dalit was murdered over a land dispute last year, Bhati publicly spoke in support of the (alleged) murderers who were Rajputs.”

Bhati speaks for his own samaj, not for everyone… some fear his language of dominance.
—Uda Ram Meghwal

Meghwal added that scheduled castes and tribes comprise a quarter of Barmer’s population. But these socially disadvantaged groups cannot dream of sending a representative to the Parliament on either a Congress or a BJP ticket. Since Independence, all parliamentarians have been from dominant castes.

An apology

In this heady tumult of caste, development, and aspirations, not everyone is happy with incumbent BJP MP Kailash Choudhary. The common refrain among residents of Barmer is that Choudhary seldom showed up during his tenure, did little to resolve the water crisis and despite being a junior agriculture minister, was unable to settle crop insurance claims of farmers and develop irrigation facilities.

Sensing the anger, Choudhary offered a public apology last month during an event at the Barmer railway station: “I may have faulted in some ways…but do not punish our Prime Minister for my mistakes,” he said.

Many who want to vote for BJP said it is because of their faith in Narendra Modi.

Mint visited Choudhary’s election office in Barmer but could not meet him as the minister was out campaigning. Despite repeated attempts, Mint was unable to connect with him over the phone.

Dilip Paliwal, Barmer district president of BJP contended that the minister’s apology was an emotional statement, reflecting his inability to implement central schemes due to non-cooperation by the last Congress-run state government. “The truth is that the state government (run by the Congress party till November 2023) repeatedly tried to obstruct implementation of central schemes, infrastructure and water projects which slowed down the pace of development in Barmer,” he said.

Paliwal cited instances like the state government not allocating land for a civil airport and a research centre on millets.

“We are confident. There is a silent wave of support for Modi ji.”

Chandrayaan 3.0

What do voters of Barmer have to say?

According to 19-year-old Sandip Sain, a barber and first-time voter, an independent candidate like Bhati is likely to work harder than those from established parties. “I have only seen photographs of the sitting MP. But Bhati has a direct connection with our hearts. Only he can get us water.” Sain’s family regularly buys potable water, paying between ₹500- ₹1000 per tanker.

Sain dropped out of school when the covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020. Later, he migrated to Gujarat and worked there as a barber for a year. Earlier this year, he returned to Barmer and set up a salon, next to the refinery in an under-construction shopping complex, with financial help from his family.

Sain named the salon ‘Chandrayaan-3 Gents Parlour’ after India’s successful lunar mission last year. The unique name will get him more customers, he believes, than say, a ‘Royal’ or a ‘Big Boss’ salon.

Soumya, another first-time voter, and a science graduate thinks very differently. Daughter of a Dalit marginal farmer, she is preparing for the coveted civil services entrance exams. She worked part-time at a bank for a year and borrowed money to pay for tuition. “The most important issue in this election is unemployment. I will vote for Ummeda Ram (the Congress candidate) because he has worked to improve local schools,” she said.

Vijay Soni, who runs a jewellery store in Baniyaban, a large village where 600 families live, said rising prices of gold and falling income of customers has severely hit his profits. “Bhati may win from here but my vote will go to BJP. I have faith in Modi ji. He always does what he promises, be it (abrogation of) Article 370 or construction of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya. I just hope he does something about the gold prices,” he said.

Just a few kilometres away from the district headquarters of Barmer, Pappu Devi seems to be living in another world, in a hamlet named Gehun ki Dhani. The 25-year-old Dalit woman with an ailing husband runs a tiny grocery shack. She earns less than ₹50 a day.

Her name was deleted from the free food scheme a few months back. She has no water connection, cooking gas or a toilet. The day this writer met her, she had cooked a watery-thin curry made with borrowed butter milk. That was lunch. Yet, her face was stoic and reassuring.

Who will she vote for on 26 April? Whichever button gets pressed that day, she said, a mischievous smile crossing her face.