New Delhi, Sept. 15 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has narrowly defeated the Congress party by a margin of less than one percentage point in the recently concluded Rajasthan urban local body elections.

Out of the total votes polled across 309 civic bodies, the BJP secured 35.18 per cent (37,35,567 votes) compared to Congress's 34.24 per cent (36,35,952 votes), yielding a razor-thin winning margin of just 0.94 per cent (99,615 votes).

Meanwhile, Independent candidates secured a substantial share, securing a total of 27.38 per cent (29,06,787 votes), while the 'None of the Above' (NOTA) option secured 1.03 per cent (1,09,523 votes), outperforming several smaller parties.

Among the remaining contenders, the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party...