9 Dec was the day when Gujarat passed the first phase of choosing its next government and deciding the fate of its 22 years old relationship with BJP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the star campaigner for BJP and soon to be Congress President Rahul Gandhi for the opposition party. There is no doubt that none of the leaders have left any stone unturned campaigning for the elections.
Both the parties made allegations and counter allegations in order to pull the other down and lure the voters to their court. Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi have both held several rallies and public meetings to decide the future course of action in poll-bound Gujarat. But the first phase of polling which was held on 9 Dec for Saurashtra and south Gujarat, where according to the reports approximately 68 percent of voters tuned out, have not stopped the leaders even a bit.
Even while the voting was underway on 9 Dec, both Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi had already begun with the campaigning for the second phase. As for the latest updates, Modi is scheduled to hold rallies in Patan, Nadiad in Kheda district, and Ahmedabad, on Monday. While Rahul Gandhi will be addressing rallies in Tharad, Banaskantha followed by public meetings in Viramgam and Savli. and lastly for the day at the stet capital Gandhinagar.
The voting for the second phase of the assembly elections in Gujarat will take place on 14 Dec and the results for both the phases will be announced on 18 Dec.
Campaigning aggressively for the phase 2 of the Gujarat Assembly elections, BJP and Congress had planned for hosting road shows as a part of the campaigning, however, both were denied the permission. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to hold a road show, two days ahead of the polling on 12 Dec and Rahul Gandhi had also planned for the same but the date was not fixed yet. However, the shows for both the leaders have been called off in wake of the law and order concerns as well as to avoid public inconvenience.
Narendra Modi’s roadshow was supposed to take him from Dharnidhar Derasar in west Ahmedabad to the Sabarmati Riverfront. Rahul Gandhi, on the other hand, was to travel from Jamalpur in east Ahmedabad to Memco, located on the outskirts of the city.
Ahmedabad police commissioner Anup Kumar Singh in his statement to the press, said that “in order to keep the law and order under control and make sure that the daily workings is not disturbed and the local public does not face any inconvenience, the leaders of BJP and Congress have been denied the permission to hold road shows.”
While both the leaders have been denied the permission and the police also blocked permission for a roadshow planned by Hardik Patel, the Patidar agitation spearhead and his supporters held a motorcycle rally on Monday. Patel is scheduled to take out a road rally that will span the entire city of Ahmedabad. The firebrand Patidar leader will travel from Bhopal, located on the western outskirts of Ahmedabad, to Nikol, located on the eastern end of the city. Along the way, he is also pass through the areas which are considered a stronghold of the BJP party Party president Amit Shah and former Anandiben Patel.
During the rally, while talking to the reporters, Hardik expressed his confidence. He said that “I am getting a very good response from the people and I am very confident.” Hardik Patel after much drama and chains of meetings and discussions had last month extended its support to the Congress.
The Patidar leader had put forth a demand that his community will support whichever party fulfills the reservation demand of the Patidar. However, he had also more than once indicated that he is working towards defeating the BJP in Gujarat. Congress party had come up with a suggestion that would grant the reservation to the Patidars and not disturb the 50 percent reservation cap set by the Indian Constitution. After much discussions and meetings, Hardik had said that he was satisfied with the suggestion of the Congress and would back the party in the elections.
The Patidars support to the Congress has undoubtedly left a dent in the traditional vote bank of the BJP. However, few are also of the opinion that the even though Hardik has extended support to Congress, the Patidars who are still loyal to the BJp will vote for the latter and the erosion of Patidar votes from BJP will not affect the party much.
Campaigning for the second phase of the elections will end on 13 Dec and the state goes to poll on 14 Dec.