GANDHINAGAR
The anticipation is over. Narendra Modi is back with a bang in Gujarat. Hat trick achieved. For Congress, this is more than a debacle with the tallest leaders of the party losing out soon after the counting began.
On his part, Modi unsheathed his national ambition in his post victory address by choosing to speak in Hindi instead of Gujarati, in a reminder of his Mission Sadbhavana launched in Ahmedabad last year.
Amid a cheering crowd that urged Modi to march towards Delhi, Modi in his signature style titillated the crowd saying that on their insistence, he would visit Delhi for a day on December 27. He however reached out to his supporters across the country nevertheless and said that his victory is also a result of the blessings of the people across the country, who have been thirsty for development and good governance.
For all practical purposes, Narendra Modi’s fight in Gujarat had been not just against rival Congress, but also against a section of the Sangh Parivar and his own party leaders. The defeat of anti-Modi faction in BJP was writ large on the face of senior BJP leader Surendra Patel a strong loyalist of L.K Advani. As the party supporters broke out in celebration at BJP’s Khanpur office, a despondent Patel was walking away silently.
In his thumping victory, Modi has inflicted a most severe blow to both his detractors within the BJP as well as his official rival Congress. Both the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee Arjun Modvadia and leader of opposition Shaktisinh Gohil lost in Porbandar and Bhavnagar rural constituencies. Ironically it is only renegade BJP strongman Shankarsinh Vaghela, who will now hold the fort for Congress in the state legislative assembly.
Wary of his forced entry into Delhi polity, a part of BJP leadership had been in touch with Keshubhai and had resurrected the octogenarian from a sort of political oblivion to erect a third Hindutva force in Gujarat. However, in spite of all the hype, Keshubhai could only retain his own seat from Visavadar in Saurashtra leaving a free stage for Modi all the way in Saurashtra.
In a show of Magnanimity, Modi however went to seek Keshubhai’s blessings after meeting his mother in Gandhinagar. The graceful Patel Patriarch too obliged Modi and offered him sweets but simultaneously issued a statement saying that the win or defeat does not alter the realities on the ground.
“We accept the results with an open mind. But will say only this, that win or defeat does not change the merit. The questions at the ground level in Gujarat remain as before with only an illusion of development. True and inclusive development has not taken place. We’ll continue to voice the concerns of the fight for getting justice for the common people,” he said.
However, BJP too lost some of its heavyweights in the form of Jay Narayan Vyas, President RC Faldu, Fakir Vaghela. Compared to 117 seats in 2007, Modi on his hat trick retained 115 seats beating anti-incumbency factor comprehensively.
Keeping with the Congress tradition, meanwhile, Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee President Arjun Modvadia has tendered his resignation from his position. Modvadia for the records have also lost his own seat at Porbandar to BJP candidate Babu Bokhiria. In a short statement Modvadia said that the party honours the decision of the voters of the state and will play a positive and constructive role of opposition in days to come.
