High Voltage Drama In Gujarat; Showdown Between Shah, Anandiben

Gujarat has got a new CM, but not without an ugly confrontation between top BJP leaders.

Nitin Patel is the new Chief Minister of Gujarat, declared overenthusiastic Gujarati news channels on Friday afternoon. His smiling pictures appeared on all channels. His followers started bursting crackers.

That’s not all! A confident Patel gave interviews to TV channels and talked about his vision for the state. He even accepted congratulatory messages! Party sources were telling journalists that it was a done deal. And it all seemed logical considering caste equations and the present condition.

But Amit Shah had a different game-plan in his mind. He had arrived in Gandhinagar on Thursday morning and held one-on-one meetings with all senior party leaders and MLAs. On Friday afternoon, central observer Gadkari was to arrive for the meeting of party MLAs. Drama started the moment he landed.

Chakma in Gujarat because we kept speculating about Nitin Patel since morning & we got Rupani. Don't guess who the new RBI Governor wud be!

— Sanjay Pugalia (@sanjaypugalia) August 5, 2016