Rajasthan | The Rajasthan State Election Commission formally announced the Panchayati Raj elections in the state on October 3, 2026. With this announcement, the Model Code of Conduct has become effective in 14,403 Gram Panchayats of the state. Electoral activities have intensified in rural areas and candidates have started laying their ground. This election is being considered a major test for the candidates for the post of Sarpanch. Technical aspects of the detailed election schedule released by the Commission have increased the concerns of many candidates. The biggest problem has come to the fore regarding the time between symbol allocation and voting. According to the rules, Sarpanch candidates will get only a few hours for campaigning after getting the official symbol. Voices of protest against this discrepancy have started rising from social media to rural chaupals. Villagers and candidates are demanding the Election Commission to reconsider this program. According to the schedule released by the Election Commission, the outline of various phases of the election is as follows: Public notice will be issued on October 8, polling parties will depart on October 22, and voting for Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti members will be held on October 23. Nominations for the post of Sarpanch will be filed on October 24 from 10 am to 1 pm, and symbols will be allotted after 3 pm on the same day. Voting for the post of Sarpanch will start through ballot papers at 7 am on October 25. The math is clear that a candidate will know his election symbol on the evening of October 24 and voters will reach to exercise their franchise from 7 am the next day. In such a situation, the candidate will have only one night to communicate his election symbol to the voters. State Election Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh has clarified the situation amidst questions being raised on this administrative arrangement. During a press conference, he highlighted the main reasons behind this decision. He said that complaints are received in the Sarpanch election that a lot of money is spent and attempts are made to entice or exert undue influence on the voters. For this, it has been decided that the form will be filled today and voting will be held tomorrow. According to the Commissioner, the purpose of giving less time for election campaigning is to stop the misuse of money power. He clarified that candidates who have a clean image and are active on the ground will benefit from this. The Commission believes that this will curb attempts to influence voters in an unfair manner. Due to technical hitches, candidates have now adopted alternative routes instead of waiting for symbols. Informal public relations and campaigning have been started in many areas since October 3. Candidates are asking for votes on the basis of their personal relations, caste equations and face. Posters without election symbols have flooded platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook. However, identifying symbols remains a big challenge for elderly and less literate voters. Making the entire village memorize their new symbol in one night is proving to be the most difficult task for the candidates.