Jaipur, Sept. 18 -- Ahead of elections for mayors, chairpersons and municipal presidents, the BJP and Congress are scrambling to keep their councillors together and secure the support of independents even as the contest for control of Rajasthan's urban local bodies enters a high-stakes phase. Independents, who won 2,273 wards across the state, have emerged as a decisive force in several key civic bodies, leaving both major parties to consolidate their camps amid concerns over cross-voting and last-minute shifts. The arithmetic is particularly fluid in Ajmer, Bharatpur and Jodhpur, where neither the BJP nor Congress has enough councillors to secure the top post on its own. In Ajmer, the contest between BJP's Anamika Sharma and Congress's Kiran Garhwal turned contentious during scrutiny of nomination papers. Sharma had objected to Garhwal's nomination, alleging that Rs.19.18 lakh in dues were outstanding against Garhwal Palace, a property associated with the Congress candidate, since 2018. The BJP candidate alleged that the dues were not disclosed in the nomination papers and cited Section 24 of the municipal law. A hearing on the objection was held amid heavy police deployment at the municipal corporation office, where supporters of both candidates gathered and raised slogans. The State Election Commission, however, has rejected the BJP's objection to Kiran Garhwal's candidature in Ajmer, officials said. The numbers make Ajmer a closely watched contest. Congress has 37 councillors, BJP 32 and independents 11 in the 80-member corporation, making independents crucial to the mayoral arithmetic. Congress has also moved its councillors outside Rajasthan, with party leaders saying 37 Congress councillors and five independents were taken to Bengaluru amid allegations of political pressure. The BJP has disputed the allegations. While in Bharatpur, independents won 36 of 65 wards, crossing the majority mark of 33 on their own, while BJP won 20 and Congress seven. BJP has fielded Anuradha Singh, while Congress-backed independent councillor Vichitra Singh is also in the race. The 36 independents therefore hold the key to the formation of the board, although they have the numbers to potentially form it themselves. In Jodhpur, BJP candidate Hemaram Choudhary won Ward 50 by 83 votes in the re-poll, taking the BJP tally to 45. Congress has 44 seats and independents 11 in the 100-member corporation. The BJP's one-seat edge still leaves independents important to the final board arithmetic. Jaipur, by contrast, has a clearer picture. The BJP has 78 councillors, two above the majority mark of 76 in the 150-member corporation. The party did not win any of the four wards that went to re-poll on Wednesday. Sunil Kothari and Puneet Karnawat are among the names being discussed within the BJP for mayor. In Bhilwara, BJP nominee Jaswant Kanwar is set to become the city's first woman mayor after independent candidate Santosh Kanwar remained the only challenger at the nomination stage; Congress did not field a candidate. The BJP has 45 of the 70 councillors, against 10 Congress and 15 independents. At the municipal-council level, the numbers game has already produced an unopposed result. In Deeg, BJP's Arpit Gupta was declared chairman after independents Malti Devi and Rahul Lawaniya withdrew their nominations. The BJP had won 16 of the 40 wards, while independents had secured 24. For the 305 urban local bodies whose top-post elections remain on schedule, scrutiny of nominations is being held on Thursday, with polling for mayors, chairpersons and presidents scheduled for September 21 and elections for deputy mayors, deputy chairpersons and vice-presidents on September 22. Meanwhile, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday alleged that democracy was being "openly looted" in the state, claiming that BJP was using money and pressure to secure control of urban local bodies. Gehlot alleged that the BJP was offering crores of rupees to councillors to secure the posts of mayors and chairpersons, while those refusing were allegedly being threatened or forcibly picked up by police. These allegations could not be independently verified....