With 2019 lok Sabha polls coming closer, simmering discontent in ruling BJP as well as opposing Congress party started surfacing in Gujarat especially among sitting MlAs and some of the senior leaders of both the parties.
Over the past few years controversies of Gujarat Congress used to become public, but in the case of BJP such situation is unusual in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home-State. Interestingly three Vadodara legislatures came out in open to voice their concern at a time when Chief Minister Vijay Rupani is on six days tour to Israel.
The MlAs from Gujarat’s cultural capital Vadodara – Madhu Srivastava, Yogesh Patel and Ketan Inamdar expressed their anger against workings of BJP ruled state Government and attitude of bureaucrats towards legislators.
Shrivastava who is having reputation of muscleman said that ever since the current Government took charge, officials were not attending elected representatives and resolving their issues. The five times MlA went on to say that officials need to be ‘taught’ some lessons. Manjalpur MlA Patel said that legislators were having responsibilities to resolve people’s problems but due to callous attitude of officials they were not able to represent issues of their constituencies properly.
“State Government functionaries should have control over officials. Here we feel that officials have become thick skinned and they even don’t care about people’s representatives,” says Inamdar who is MlA from Savli constituency. The three MlAs have also claimed that more number of BJP legislators would join them in coming days.
Instantly Gujarat BJP leadership came into action to pacify surfacing discontent among MlAs as senior cabinet minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama said that he, Deputy CM Nitin Patel and state BJP chief Jitu Vaghani would sort out issues of all the three MlAs from Vadodara.
Talking to media persons Deputy CM Patel said that the MlAs were annoyed because of certain officials’ behaviour and not angry with the party. “They have been call on to meet me at the state capital Gandhinagar on Friday,” he said.
Meanwhile similar situation is also prevailing in rival Congress camp too. Koli leader and Jasadan MlA Kuvarji Bavalia on Friday skipped important meeting of Congress MlAs called by Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) in-charge Rajiv Satav. Bavalia is complaining continuously over the past six months to party high command over his ignorance by the state Congress leadership.
Sources close to him also informed that he had also met BJP president Amit Shah two days back at latter’s residence in Ahmedabad. However, there has been no confirmation about such meetings neither from the Congress MlA nor from the state BJP leadership. Similarly Javid Pirzada of Wankaner MlA has also expressed unhappiness over not getting important place in GPCC organisation.
Earlier this week strong Saurashtra leader Indranil Rajguru tendered his resignation after GPCC announced appointments of 12 new district and city presidents. Post Rajguru’s resignation, 17 councillors of Rajkot Municipal Corporation came openly in the ex-MlA’s support and tenders their resignations too. Sources in the oldest political party claimed that more number of MlAs and senior leaders would come out openly against the GPCC leadership’s working style as the 2019 lok Sabha polls would come closer.