Rajasthan YouTuber With 21 Lakh Followers Gets Just 33 Votes In Gram Panchayat Poll

Jodhpur, Oct 27 (PTI) Having a huge following on social media does not guarantee a win in an election. This bitter truth was highlighted by the results of a sarpanch election in Osian tehsil of Jodhpur district, where popular influencer and YouTuber Omprakash Bishnoi, an astrologer and face reader, suffered a crushing defeat despite having more than 21 lakh followers across digital platforms.

Bishnoi, who contested the election in Indon Ki Dhani-II gram panchayat, secured just 33 votes in a village with around 1,600 voters. His defeat came as a surprise, given his substantial online popularity and the expectations of a strong electoral contest.

He has more than 14 lakh followers on Instagram, over 2 lakh on Facebook and approximately 5.5 lakh subscribers on YouTube. An astrologer and face reader, Bishnoi, is also the president of a cow shelter.

The fan-following apart, his electoral rout has triggered considerable buzz, with many pointing to his forte in fortune-telling and face-reading, who could not foresee his own electoral fate.

In local elections, personal connections, participation in village affairs and engagement with residents' everyday concerns often matter more than online likes and comments. Bishnoi's experience appears to underline this distinction between virtual fame and grassroots acceptance igniting the debate over whether digital popularity can translate into votes on the ground.

Following the announcement of the results, Bishnoi took to his official social media accounts to thank the voters of his native village and accept their verdict gracefully.

"œHeartfelt thanks to all the voters of Indon Ki Dhani Second Gram Panchayat, my birthplace, for giving me so much support...Out of the nearly 1,600 people in my village, only 33 members of my own family voted in my favour.

"I contested the election for the post of sarpanch from my village, and the fact that my election office remained completely free of intoxicants is itself a matter of great satisfaction for me. Everyone claims to stand by you, but it is in times like these that you discover who truly supports you from the heart. May Lord Dwarkadhish fulfil all your wishes," he wrote.

His dignified response to the defeat and emphasis on a drug-free campaign have drawn appreciation on social media. However, the result has left a pointed question for digital celebrities entering electoral politics: can millions of followers online ever substitute for the trust of voters at the grassroots level?

(Disclaimer: This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)