NEW DELHI: Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani has announced that he will contest the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections as an independent candidate from the Vadgam constituency.
The 36-year-old lawyer-activist is the head of the Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch and shot to prominence after the flogging incident in Una in July 2016. Four Dalit men had been flogged on suspicion of having killed a cow.
Mevani made the announcement in a tweet on Monday.
Friends, I m contesting from Vadgam-11 seat of Banaskantha district of Gujarat as an independent candidate. We shall fight, we shall win.
— Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) November 27, 2017
He is in the fray with BJP’s Vijaybhai Chakravati and Congress’s sitting MLA Manilal Vaghela.
The move comes after the sitting MLA Manibhai Vaghela said that the state Congress asked him not to contest the polls from the seat “as a part of an agreement” with mevani.
“The party has asked me not to contest from the vedgam seat this time. though Mevani will contest the polls as an independent, he will have Congress’ support. thus, there won’t be any Congress candidate on the seat.” said vaghela.
Vaghela said that Congress has given the indirect support to the Mevani for the vedgam seat, reserved for a scheduled caste candidate.
Mevani is of the three young leaders who have galvanized their communities against the BJP. The others are Patidar leader Hardik Patel and OBC leader Alpesh Thakor. Mevani is the most articulate among the three, who are mobilizing support in the rural areas.
Mevani had met with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi but had stopped short of declaring outright support for the party. He had at the time said he would not start a political party and would only campaign for votes against the BJP.
He even requested other parties as well as aspiring independent not to file their papers. “Since the ruling BJP is our enemy, I request aspiring candidates of other parties and independents not to file their papers, so that we can have a direct battle with BJP. This is peoples battle against and we will continue our fight after winning this election,” he said.