The Congress on Thursday launched its campaign for Rajasthan’s upcoming Panchayati Raj elections from Degana in Nagaur, with state president Govind Singh Dotasra urging workers to stay united.

Dotasra accused the BJP government of misusing administrative power. The campaign launch comes days after a dramatic protest in Jaipur over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

On September 28, senior Congress leaders including former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, Dotasra, and Rajasthan in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa were detained during a march to the State Election Commission office.

When protesters tried to push through barricades, police used water cannons to disperse them. More than 100 leaders and workers were detained and later released. Dotasra told the crowd that the agitation over voter lists would now be taken to people across the state.

The protest focused on alleged large-scale manipulation of voter lists. Congress leaders said the march was only the beginning of a wider campaign. The party has pledged to intensify its nationwide agitation on the issue.

What happens next: the Panchayati Raj campaign will test Congress’s grassroots strength in Rajasthan ahead of bigger electoral battles.