In a late night drama that unfolded at the Swarnim Sankul in Gandhinagar, Congress leader Ahmed Patel made it for the fifth time to the Rajya Sabha, dashing the ruling BJP's dreams of finishing the Congress in Gujarat ahead of assembly elections due by the year end.
Patel had the last laugh in an edge-of the-seat fight against BJP's Balwantsinh Rajput, a Congress rebel who was until recently the opposition party's chief whip in the state assembly. While Patel secured 44 votes, Rajput could manage only 38.
Soon after the results were announced, celebrations broke out in the Congress camp and continued till early morning, a rarity in case of Rajya Sabha elections. For the BJP, which was on celebration mode since evening and had arranged for three bouquets, the news of one of its candidates losing was a dampner of sorts.
National BJP president Amit Shah and Union Minister Smriti Irani also emerged victorious with both getting 46 votes each. Three seats had fallen vacant this month in the state that sends 11 Rajya Sabha candidates.
The RS elections in Gujarat turned out to be a closely watched contest with the candidature of Patel, the political adviser to Congress President Sonia Gandhi. Six Congress MLAs, including Rajput, quit from their posts ahead of the RS elections. The contest became more interesting after the Congress ferried 44 of its MLAs to Bengaluru to counter alleged poaching from the BJP. Some of the MLAs of the opposition Congress had alleged that the BJP was using “money and muscle” power and threatening them, of which the BJP has been in the denial. The Gujarat assembly has a strength of 182 legislators.
Considered as the power centre and the Chanakya in the Congress circles, it was also a prestige battle for Patel because a defeat would have meant decrease in his political clout. As expected, it was not a smooth journey for Patel ever since the elections were announced and the nominations were filed. Though the BJP did not have the numbers to send three candidates to the Upper House (it had the strength to send two), it banked on cross-voting and Congress rebels.
However, with the midnight drama at the election centre unfolding in favour of the Congress, Patel's chances of victory became clear on Tuesday. The Election Commission late last night cancelled votes of two Congress rebels—Raghavji Patel and Bholabhai—who had voted in favour of the BJP. The Congress had demanded cancellation of their votes as they had shown the ballot papers to others (from the BJP) as well, instead of showing it only to the Congress election agent.
Congress leaders, including Shaktisinh Gohil, raised an objection when the election officer said he alone would see the video and take the decision.
The BJP and the Congress leaders thronged the Election Commission's office in New Delhi to make representations and finally the verdict on vote counting came at 11.30 pm Tuesday night. The counting was to begin at 5 pm.
Patel's victory has provided the much needed impetus to the Congress as the rank and file would now feel better placed to take on the BJP in the upcoming assembly elections.
On the other hand, for the BJP it is a defeat in Shah's home state and more so when he is considered the master strategist and a master of numbers. A day before the election, he had convened a meeting of the party MLAs, where he had even given instructions on how to vote in order to ensure that all the three BJP candidates emerged victorious.
Meanwhile, Tuesday had begun on a bad note for Patel with former Congress leader Shankersinh Vaghela announcing that he had voted against him. Seven Congress MLAs close to Vaghela also did not vote for Patel. Karansinh Patel, one of the 44 MLAs who had gone to Bengaluru, had also voted against Patel.
However, late at night, Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) MLA Nalin Kotadia announced that he had not voted for the BJP. Kotadia, a Patel leader, is unhappy with the BJP over its treatment of Patidars, who have been demanding reservation. The party has merged with the BJP.
