Lok Sabha polls: Rupala’s comment controversial on air but missing on ground
Bangdi Bazaar, known for all kinds of shiny bangles, leads to other shopping destinations for clothes, food, kitchenware and more
Afternoons are for siesta time in the princely town of Rajkot and shoppers trickle in before sunset at the popular Bangdi Bazaar, known for its shiny bangles of all shapes and sizes. This man-made jewelry bazaar leads to other shopping destinations, for clothes, food, kitchenware and more. The wedding season, usually from October to January, is when shopkeepers are busiest on the streets here.
Barely a five-minute walk from the Gandhi Museum, the Alfred School when Mahatma Gandhi had studied there for a few years, the marketplace does not reflect the Rajput-Kayasth unrest that is reportedly brewing in the Saurashtra region, especially in the Rajkot constituency. Not at first glance, at least.
Aniket of Narendra Bangles, one of the biggest in the field, is reluctant to talk about the Lok Sabha elections or politics.
“Everything is good here. This is the best condition, unlike others…” he says, as he opens the boxes of bracelets in an attempt to sell them.
Around Saundarya, Vimal Mehta is less tight-lipped. He expresses his expectation of lower taxes. He is referring to income tax, but also to goods and services tax (GST). But Mehta is clear that the Narendra Modi government will return to power, and it must. On an adjacent avenue, a shop that sells wedding clothes has been standing still for some time. “We only get good business during the wedding season,” says the shop owner, but he withdraws from any discussion about the challenges for traders. “Sau taka (100 percent) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is coming back,” he says confidently. Interestingly, most companies are aware of the recent controversy in Saurashtra that the main opposition Congress party is looking to cash in on, but they are dismissing it as a non-event.
The man in question, 69-year-old Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries Minister Parshottam Rupala, talks to Business Standard about how the Opposition has used his comments to capitalize on the opportunity. Rupala, the BJP candidate from Rajkot, had recently opened a Pandora’s box by saying that former maharajas had succumbed to the persecutions of foreign rulers, including the British.
Rupala, who was a member of Rajya Sabha and is contesting the Lok Sabha elections for the first time, says, “Meet the voters and ask yourself” when asked if people in Rajkot are angry with him and the BJP. “It is not true at all, only a ground zero check will reveal the truth,” he says emphatically. But does he have any regrets about his recent comment that sparked a row during election season? “It was not good. I have already publicly apologized for that.” He adds that “people will vote for the BJP, there is no doubt about that. The BJP will repeat its earlier success by winning all 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat in a fairly comfortable manner.” Rupala said the opposition had created a negative environment after the comment.
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Mukul Wasnik, Congress general secretary in charge of Gujarat, who has been shuttling between the cities in the run-up to the elections, told this newspaper that his party is in relatively good shape. He points out that the expected Congress number in Gujarat is at least ten seats. “Earlier, the BJP campaign was talking about winning by a wide margin in the state. Now this kind of talk has evaporated…” says Wasnik.
Wasnik’s colleague Shaktisinh Gohil, president of the Gujarat Congress, is optimistic. “We have received a good response in the state. Unfortunately, we did not get a single seat in Gujarat in 2014 and 2019. But this time it will be different… There has been a series of mistakes and failures in the BJP…” He added that the Congress would deliver on its manifesto promises.
There are about 150,000 Rajput voters out of a total of 2.3 million in Rajkot. Besides Rajputs, Patidars will also play a role when Gujarat goes to the polls on May 7. Both BJP and Congress candidates (Rupala and Pareshbhai Dhanani) belong to the Patidar community from Amreli district, sparking a row. Dhanani, 47, who hails from the Leuva Patidar community, which is believed to have a stronger position in the Saurashtra region, had won Assembly seats in 2012 and 2017 but lost to the BJP in 2022. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Dhanani had lost to the BJP candidate from Amreli.
The Rajkot match is one of the most watched in Gujarat for many reasons. The BJP has won here continuously since 1989, with the sole exception of 2009. The party also dropped its two-time MP Mohan Kundariya this time and nominated Rupala. More than anything, there is a connection here with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. About 22 years ago, Modi first entered the Gujarat legislature as an MLA and won by-elections in the Rajkot II constituency.
First print: May 4, 2024 | 12:27 pm IST