Campaigning for the last phase of polling in the Gujarat elections ended on Tuesday amidst air shows, temple visits, and several allegations flying thick and fast between the Congress and the BJP. In all, 93 seats are up for grabs on Thursday, when North Gujarat, Ahmedabad and Vadodara go to the polls.
Last week saw condemnation and criticism spiralling out of control between the Congress and the BJP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the charge and tried to salvage brownie points out of Mani Shankar Aiyar’s ‘neech’ remark. As the debate rages on between development and reservation, for the first time in two decades, the average voter in Gujarat is unsure which party to vote for.
Confused Electorate
The BJP and the Congress have been fighting tooth and nail to earn the people’s mandate. After ruling the state for 22 years, the BJP looks quite wary of losing Gujarat, and have digressed to issues such as Rahul Gandhi’s numerous temple visits, Mani Shankar Aiyar’s ‘neech’ remark on PM Modi, and even a nexus between Pakistan and the Congress to bring Ahmed Patel as the CM in Gujarat. CM Vijay Rupani had in fact stated that if Congress wins the elections, Pakistanis will burst crackers to celebrate BJP’s defeat.
On the other hand, the Congress, under Rahul Gandhi, has not only countered all the allegation levied by BJP, but have liberally declared reservation for Patidars, unemployment allowances, and higher returns for farmers as a reply to BJP’s faltering ‘Vikas’.
But the average voter continues to be befuddled by the choices that lay in front. On one hand there is the BJP, a party that has ruled the state for two decades and put Gujarat on the world map; the same party that introduced GST and demonetisation, the effects of which are still felt across millions of households in Gujarat.
However, the average Gujarati still appreciates PM Modi’s role at the centre, and for those reasons, could return BJP to power in the state, since a known enemy is better than a forced ally.
The voters of Gujarat are equally sceptical about the Congress running the state as the Grand Old Party’s campaign has been anchored wholly by Rahul Gandhi. Besides, the Congress is back at caste politics as it has promised reservation to the Patidars in its ‘People’s Manifesto’, which many have claimed to be constitutionally impossible.
When The Quint spoke to people about their allegiances this voting season, almost everyone from all caste backgrounds declared that they will decide whom to vote for on the day of voting.
Flying Visit to Temples
After permission was denied to both the Congress and the BJP to hold roadshows in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, by the city’s police department, both Rahul Gandhi and PM Narendra Modi decided to end their campaign with divine blessings. While Rahul Gandhi went to the famous Jagannath Temple in Ahmedabad’s Jamalpur area, PM Modi decided to put up a grand show on the Sabarmati Riverfront in a last-ditch attempt to personify Gujarat’s development through his presence.
The same seaplane which was seen on the shores of Mumbai last week, was flown into the city to ferry PM Modi from Sabarmati Riverfront to Daskroi dam in Mehsana and onwards to Ambaji temple in Banaskantha district.
The seaplane took off amidst chants of ‘Modi-Modi’ while the PM plugged the publicity stunt as a part of the Gujarat development model and stated that these planes will be used to connect remote corners of Gujarat where airports are not available.
Rahul Gandhi, on the other hand, called his first press conference in Ahmedabad after taking up the role of the president of Indian National Congress. During the presser, he once again launched a tirade on PM Modi and claimed that there is a strong undercurrent of anti-incumbency in Gujarat, which will favour the Congress.
Hardik-Alpesh-Jignesh Factor
The Gujarat elections this time has also brought three youth leaders to the national spotlight. Hardik Patel, who gained notoriety after his alleged sex tapes went viral, still managed to pull crowds that rival PM Modi’s rallies, and was heard wooing the audience at large to vote against the BJP.
Although the Congress has agreed to the Patidar’s demand for reservation, instances of infighting is rife within PAAS. Dinesh Bhambania, who was media managing Hardik Patel until now, has come out against the young leader and alleged that the latter had a secret meeting with Rahul Gandhi’s brother-in-law Robert Vadra. Meanwhile, Patidars too, just like other voters, are unsure about their choice this time.
At Hardik’s last rally in Ahmedabad on Monday, many Patidars who were in attendance, told The Quint that they have not decided which party to vote for, although the police atrocities faced by Patidars two years ago is still fresh in their minds. The Patidars, as a collective, want to scare the BJP with their strength in numbers, although many would still return to the saffron fold on polling day.
Alpesh Thakor, on the other hand, did not have the same impact as Hardik during his campaign for the Radhanpur constituency. The OBC leader, who got the Congress ticket this election, was heard commenting about PM Modi’s secret to fairness, which went viral on the internet and has become a butt of all jokes. Alpesh was instrumental in uniting the OBCs under one banner to counter the Patidar reservation movement at its onset. But his efforts this election have lost steam after the list of candidates were declared, as both parties have distributed a large chunk of tickets to OBC candidates across the state.
Jignesh Mewani, who will contest from Vadgam as an independent with Congress’ support, has been projected as the Dalit leader from the state. Mewani, who had spoken to The Quint earlier, had said that he aims to become the voice of Dalits in the assembly, and from there on, represent the Dalits and work for their development at the national level. His rallies in Vadgam, although small in scale due to funding issues, have seen a tremendous response and bookies have sighted him as the candidate to watch out for.
BJP’s Crowd Management
The Election Commission issued a notice to BJP’s candidate Bhushan Bhatt, from Jamalpur-Khadia constituency in Ahmedabad. The notice was issued after a video went viral that showed Bhatt telling BJP workers to flout the EC’s code of conduct and show up at Modi’s seaplane event at Sabarmati with 4,000-5,000 two-wheelers; he said he will distribute money to those who attend the event and wanted maximum turnout at the event.
Meanwhile in Mehsana, the head of BJP’s IT Cell in the district, Chandresh Patel was seen brandishing swords at protesters in a video that went viral. The protesters were out on the streets sloganeering against BJP’s candidate Rajnikant Patel, who is the sitting MLA from Becharji constituency, when Chandresh ran after them with a sword to disperse the crowd.
Gaffes Galore by Polling Officers
The Election Commission on Monday has called for repolling in six booths that went for polling in the first phase of elections on Saturday last week. The EC called for repolling after the presiding officers of these six booths did not delete mock polling data from the EVMs and VVPATs. Mock polling is held an hour before the actual polling begins and is conducted to ensure that any issues with EVMs and VVPATs are immediately addressed, so that polling is not hampered.
These polling booths include Bandhara and Gangda polling booths for Una constituency in Gir Somnath; Chanod Koloni booth for Umbergaon constituency in Valsad; Chorvad booth for Nizar constituency in Tapi; Ghunda and Manohar booths of Jam Jodhpur constituency in Jamnagar.
Meanwhile, the District Election Officer in Narmada issued show cause notice to the Zonal Officer of Dediapada Assembly Constituency along with five others for allegedly ‘forgetting’ to return the VVPAT machine after the first phase of polling ended on 9 December. The notice was issued a day after the VVPATs were returned on Sunday.
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