With 48 seats, Saurashtra area holds key to energy in Gujarat; shut contest on playing cards

Via PTI

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat’s Saurashtra area, which accounts for 48 out of the full 182 Meeting seats within the state with a large Patidar and Different Backward Elegance (OBC) inhabitants, has the prospective to tilt the ability sport in favour of or in opposition to the ruling BJP or opposition Congress within the subsequent month’s elections.

Within the 2017 Meeting polls, the Congress had bagged 28 seats on this area, bettering its earlier election’s tally of 15 and serving to it limit the Bharatiya Janata Birthday party’s victory depend to 99.

Political observers attributed the grand outdated celebration’s spectacular display within the area to the 2015 Patidar group’s quota agitation that centered the BJP govt.

However bettering the numbers or a minimum of protecting them intact within the subsequent month’s Meeting polls can be a problem for the Congress as not like the reservation stir, there’s no factor that may function an “emotional flooring to unite” this time.

But even so, the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Birthday party (AAP) too can pose a hurdle in the way in which, the observers really feel.

The ruling BJP, which might win simply 19 seats within the area within the 2017 elections as in opposition to 30 in 2012, may be making concerted efforts to regain its misplaced flooring by means of poaching Congress MLAs. There are 11 districts on this area – Surendranagar, Morbi, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar and Botad.

Within the 2017 Meeting, BJP had did not open an account in 3 of those districts – Morbi, Gir Somnath and Amreli.

For the Congress, which has been out of energy in Gujarat for greater than twenty years, it will be significant that it sustains its 2017 efficiency in Saurashtra to be able to regain the misplaced flooring within the state.

However this isn’t going to be simple for it given the truth that the 2015 Patidar quota agitation that united Patidars in opposition to the ruling BJP is lacking this time, the political observers stated.

Moreover, Hardik Patel, essentially the most outstanding Patidar agitation chief who had joined the Congress in 2019 and used to be appointed its running president, snapped ties with the celebration previous this 12 months and joined the BJP which has even fielded him from Viramgam seat this time.

The AAP, which is for the primary time contesting on all 182 seats in Gujarat, can play spoilsport for the Congress as the more youthful technology of the Patidar group is observed supporting the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit, mavens stated.

On the identical time, the BJP is observed compensating for any loss of fortify from the Patidar group with the OBC, any other main group within the area, which is principally unfold alongside the coastal belt and accounts for almost 40 in step with cent of seats, they stated.

“From what seems on the first look of seat allocation, the BJP has higher the collection of OBC applicants it has fielded this time within the area. If it suffers any loss from Patidars, it hopes to make it up with the fortify of OBCs,” stated political analyst Dilip Gohil.

He stated the Patidars from Saurashtra, particularly younger electorate who paintings in Surat and are influenced by means of the AAP, are more likely to avoid each the BJP and Congress. This fashion, the Congress will probably be harm greater than the BJP, he stated.

“With uncertainty about how this group will behave within the subsequent month’s elections, Congress may even need to financial institution at the fortify of a large inhabitants of Koli and different OBC group individuals unfold alongside the state’s coastal belt,” sociologist Gaurang Jani stated.

“The Congress’s just right efficiency within the Saurashtra area used to be because of the Patidar quota agitation that happened ahead of the 2017 Meeting elections. 5 years down the road, on the other hand, the group does no longer have an emotional flooring to unite,” he stated.

Ever since its deficient efficiency within the area in 2017, the ruling BJP has made concerted efforts to regain its misplaced flooring by means of poaching Congress MLAs, a few of them being heavyweights who’re influential within the area and of their group.

As observed within the BJP’s price ticket allocation within the area, the celebration seems to be banking on Congress turncoat MLAs and recent faces to draw votes, the observers stated.

Of the 20 Congress MLAs, who defected to the BJP at some stage in 5 years after successful the 2017 elections, part of them have been from Meeting constituencies within the Saurashtra area.

They come with Soma Patel (Limbdi seat), Parsotam Sabariya (Dhrangadhra), Brijesh Merja (Morbi), Kunvarji Bavaliya (Jasdan), Vallabh Dharaviya (Jamnagar Rural), Jawahar Chavda (Manavadar), Harshad Ribadiya (Visavadar), Bhagvan Barad (Talala), J V Kakadiya (Dhari), and Pravin Maru (Gadhada).

As in step with the BJP’s first record of 160 applicants launched Thursday (November 10), a lot of these Congress turncoat MLAs who had received the byelections after resigning from Congress were fielded by means of the ruling celebration.

On the identical time, the celebration has given prominence to recent faces by means of refusing to copy round a dozen of its sitting MLAs, together with former leader minister Vijay Rupani, senior chief R C Faldu, amongst others. The Congress historically loved a fortify base in those coastal seats with a powerful OBC base.

“There are 147 OBC communities in Gujarat. The coastal spaces will probably be necessary in deciding the destiny of the Congress. They (OBCs) have a large inhabitants, however they don’t seem to be united as a gaggle not like Patidar, Brahmin and Rajputs.

“BJP stays on a weaker flooring in those spaces. The poaching of Talala MLA, an OBC chief from a coastal seat, presentations BJP is making an attempt to create a community of supporters within the area,” Jani stated. Elections in Gujarat will probably be hung on December 1 and 5, and the counting of votes will probably be taken up on December 8.

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat’s Saurashtra area, which accounts for 48 out of the full 182 Meeting seats within the state with a large Patidar and Different Backward Elegance (OBC) inhabitants, has the prospective to tilt the ability sport in favour of or in opposition to the ruling BJP or opposition Congress within the subsequent month’s elections.

Within the 2017 Meeting polls, the Congress had bagged 28 seats on this area, bettering its earlier election’s tally of 15 and serving to it limit the Bharatiya Janata Birthday party’s victory depend to 99.

Political observers attributed the grand outdated celebration’s spectacular display within the area to the 2015 Patidar group’s quota agitation that centered the BJP govt.

However bettering the numbers or a minimum of protecting them intact within the subsequent month’s Meeting polls can be a problem for the Congress as not like the reservation stir, there’s no factor that may function an “emotional flooring to unite” this time.

But even so, the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Birthday party (AAP) too can pose a hurdle in the way in which, the observers really feel.

The ruling BJP, which might win simply 19 seats within the area within the 2017 elections as in opposition to 30 in 2012, may be making concerted efforts to regain its misplaced flooring by means of poaching Congress MLAs. There are 11 districts on this area – Surendranagar, Morbi, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar and Botad.

Within the 2017 Meeting, BJP had did not open an account in 3 of those districts – Morbi, Gir Somnath and Amreli.

For the Congress, which has been out of energy in Gujarat for greater than twenty years, it will be significant that it sustains its 2017 efficiency in Saurashtra to be able to regain the misplaced flooring within the state.

However this isn’t going to be simple for it given the truth that the 2015 Patidar quota agitation that united Patidars in opposition to the ruling BJP is lacking this time, the political observers stated.

Moreover, Hardik Patel, essentially the most outstanding Patidar agitation chief who had joined the Congress in 2019 and used to be appointed its running president, snapped ties with the celebration previous this 12 months and joined the BJP which has even fielded him from Viramgam seat this time.

The AAP, which is for the primary time contesting on all 182 seats in Gujarat, can play spoilsport for the Congress as the more youthful technology of the Patidar group is observed supporting the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit, mavens stated.

On the identical time, the BJP is observed compensating for any loss of fortify from the Patidar group with the OBC, any other main group within the area, which is principally unfold alongside the coastal belt and accounts for almost 40 in step with cent of seats, they stated.

“From what seems on the first look of seat allocation, the BJP has higher the collection of OBC applicants it has fielded this time within the area. If it suffers any loss from Patidars, it hopes to make it up with the fortify of OBCs,” stated political analyst Dilip Gohil.

He stated the Patidars from Saurashtra, particularly younger electorate who paintings in Surat and are influenced by means of the AAP, are more likely to avoid each the BJP and Congress. This fashion, the Congress will probably be harm greater than the BJP, he stated.

“With uncertainty about how this group will behave within the subsequent month’s elections, Congress may even need to financial institution at the fortify of a large inhabitants of Koli and different OBC group individuals unfold alongside the state’s coastal belt,” sociologist Gaurang Jani stated.

“The Congress’s just right efficiency within the Saurashtra area used to be because of the Patidar quota agitation that happened ahead of the 2017 Meeting elections. 5 years down the road, on the other hand, the group does no longer have an emotional flooring to unite,” he stated.

Ever since its deficient efficiency within the area in 2017, the ruling BJP has made concerted efforts to regain its misplaced flooring by means of poaching Congress MLAs, a few of them being heavyweights who’re influential within the area and of their group.

As observed within the BJP’s price ticket allocation within the area, the celebration seems to be banking on Congress turncoat MLAs and recent faces to draw votes, the observers stated.

Of the 20 Congress MLAs, who defected to the BJP at some stage in 5 years after successful the 2017 elections, part of them have been from Meeting constituencies within the Saurashtra area.

They come with Soma Patel (Limbdi seat), Parsotam Sabariya (Dhrangadhra), Brijesh Merja (Morbi), Kunvarji Bavaliya (Jasdan), Vallabh Dharaviya (Jamnagar Rural), Jawahar Chavda (Manavadar), Harshad Ribadiya (Visavadar), Bhagvan Barad (Talala), J V Kakadiya (Dhari), and Pravin Maru (Gadhada).

As in step with the BJP’s first record of 160 applicants launched Thursday (November 10), a lot of these Congress turncoat MLAs who had received the byelections after resigning from Congress were fielded by means of the ruling celebration.

On the identical time, the celebration has given prominence to recent faces by means of refusing to copy round a dozen of its sitting MLAs, together with former leader minister Vijay Rupani, senior chief R C Faldu, amongst others. The Congress historically loved a fortify base in those coastal seats with a powerful OBC base.

“There are 147 OBC communities in Gujarat. The coastal spaces will probably be necessary in deciding the destiny of the Congress. They (OBCs) have a large inhabitants, however they don’t seem to be united as a gaggle not like Patidar, Brahmin and Rajputs.

“BJP stays on a weaker flooring in those spaces. The poaching of Talala MLA, an OBC chief from a coastal seat, presentations BJP is making an attempt to create a community of supporters within the area,” Jani stated. Elections in Gujarat will probably be hung on December 1 and 5, and the counting of votes will probably be taken up on December 8.