Vaghela mum on his choice for RS polls
Former Congress leader says Ahmed Patel is a ‘friend’
Ahmedabad, Aug. 7: After weeks of dramatic political developments, Gujarat looks set for an on the edge of seat contest in the Rajya Sabha elections which will decide among others the fate of Ahmed Patel, the political secretary to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.
It is after a gap of about two decades that a contest is happening in Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat, where official nominees of major parties used to get elected unopposed, after the BJP fielded a Congress rebel against Patel, who is seeking a fifth term.
The BJP has fielded party chief Amit Shah, Union minister Smriti Irani, and Balwantsinh Rajput, who till recently was Congress’ chief whip in the House, for the three RS seats. While its first two candidate will sail through, the BJP will have to manage extra votes to enable Rajput beat Patel.
The Congress was rattled by the surprise exit of party stalwart Shankarsinha Vaghela recently. It was jolted further when its six MLAs, including Rajput, a relative of Vaghela resigned from the Assembly. Three of them later joined BJP, setting off alarm bells in the party in Gujarat where Assembly elections are due later this year.
However, six of the 51 MLAs still in the Congress, apart from Vaghela, have not put their cards on the table. They were not among the MLAs packed off to Bengaluru.
Vaghela has not quit the House yet, giving the Congress a major cause for worry.
He on Monday chose to maintain a silence on his choice of candidate for Tuesday’s polls, but said Congress nominee Ahmed Patel remained his “friend”.
“Each and every voter is the owner of his vote. The vote is the personal property of an MLA (for the Rajya Sabha election). Therefore, I do not want to reveal whom I will vote for,” Vaghela said.
Stating that he and Patel had been friends since 1977, he said, “Our relationship is not limited to politics.” He also dismissed the talks that he was in contact with the BJP members. — PTI