Two-child norm for panchayat, local body elections scrapped in Rajasthan after three decades

Ahead of the local body elections, the Rajasthan Cabinet on Wednesday (February 25, 2026) approved the removal of legal provisions prohibiting persons with more than two children from contesting the Panchayati Raj and urban local body elections. The restriction has been in place in the State for nearly 30 years.

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Two Amendment Bills for the purpose will be introduced in the ongoing Budget session of the Rajasthan Assembly, the State’s Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel said here after the Cabinet meeting. The move reverses a provision introduced in 1995 during the government led by former Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

“The two-child norm was originally introduced as a population control measure. It has lost its relevance now, as the fertility rate has declined to 2, against 3.6 during 1991-94,” Mr. Patel said. The provision had become “outdated” following a considerable change witnessed in socio-political sphere over the years, he added.

Candidates with more than two children will now be eligible to contest panchayat and municipal elections in the State. The Cabinet approved bringing the Bills for amending Section 19 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and Section 24 of the Rajasthan Municipalities Act, 2009.

Mr. Patel said both the Bills would be passed in the current Assembly session. As a major step in electoral reforms, the scrapping of the two-child norm is likely to have a direct impact on the forthcoming panchayat and urban local body polls.

The Opposition Congress strongly criticised the State Cabinet’s decision, saying the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was following the directive of its ideological fountainhead, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which has been asking Hindus to have more children. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat recently suggested that Hindu families should consider having at least three children.

Pradesh Congress Committee president Govind Singh Dotasra said the BJP, on the one hand, advises a particular community to control population growth, and repeals the two-child norm on the other. “The BJP government should clarify its stand on whether it supports population control or follows the RSS’s diktat,” he said.

However, several social organisations and public representatives have in the past sought the removal of the two-child norm, contending that the rule was discriminatory and inconsistent with democratic principles. The grassroots leaders earlier disqualified under the rule will now be able to contest elections in villages and urban wards.

In other decisions, the State Cabinet approved the formation of a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and Economic Offences; establishment of an ayurveda, yoga and naturopathy university in Ajmer; adoption of an industrial park promotion policy; and clearance of a revised financial model for the proposed Rajasthan Mandapam and Global Capability Centre in Jaipur.