Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections, the ruling BJP is trying to rope in new faces from the opposition into the party's fold. The other side of the coin, however, shows the party losing some old guards, who were denied tickets at the expense of the newcomers, thereby creating a lose-lose situation for the party.
Several leaders from the BJP have hinted at the willingness to contest as independents while entirely breaking ties with the party, resulting in an upsurge in the number of disappointed voters in Gujarat, who have their loyalties lying with the leaders rather than the parties they represent. At least one sitting Bharatiya Janata Party MLA and four former legislators have threatened to contest as independents after being denied tickets by the BJP for the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections.
While some of these disgruntled leaders have said they will make their next move after consulting supporters, former BJP MLA and the party's known tribal face Harshad Vasava already filed his nomination papers on Friday as an independent from the Nandod seat, reserved for Scheduled Tribe candidates. Vasava is the president of Gujarat BJP's Scheduled Tribe Morcha and represented the erstwhile Rajpipla seat between 2002 and 2007 and from 2007 to 2012.
In the neighbouring Vadodara district, one sitting and two former BJP MLAs are up in arms against the party after being denied tickets. Six-time MLA Madhu Shrivastav from Vaghodia, who has been denied a ticket, said he will contest as an independent if his supporters want him to. The BJP has fielded Ashwin Patel from the seat. Another former BJP MLA Dinesh Patel aka Dinu Mama of Padra seat in Vadodara district has also said he would contest the election independently. The BJP has given the ticket to Chaitanyasinh Zala.
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In what is being seen as a damage control exercise, state BJP general secretary Bhargav Bhatt and Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi on Saturday visited Vadodara and met local party workers. Both exuded confidence that the BJP will win all the seats of Vadodara, and that the BJP is like a family whose spirit cannot be weakened by some internal fissures. The BJP has so far named candidates for 166 Assembly seats out of the total 182.
The Gujarat Congress meanwhile has released three lists within just a matter of days though some internal disagreements within the party still persist. The party has seemingly concentrated its focus on getting tickets for local leaders from various locations. Some social activists also reached the Congress office demanding tickets.
A local activist from Thakkarbapa Nagar is requesting a ticket for the Congress Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan, with Madanlal Jaiswal being the potential candidate option. The Viramgam Assembly has also received ticket requests from members of the Thakor community. Yogpal Singh Gohil has applied for a seat in the Waghodia Assembly. Four tickets have also been requested by NSUI and Youth Congress. Elections for the 182-member Gujarat Assembly will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5. The counting of votes will be taken up on December 8.
