5time MLA ofCongjoins BJP, gets berth in Guj govt
SWITCHING OVER Former Jasdan MLA says he has faith in PM Modi, Shah
Rahul Gandhi practises caste politics for vote bank. This didn’t allow me to serve my constituency...
KUNVARJI BAVALIYA, ex-Cong MLA GANDHINAGAR:
In a major blow to the Gujarat Congress that has been facing internal dissent, its five-time MLA and senior Koli leader, Kunvarji Bavaliya, resigned as party legislator and joined the BJP on Tuesday.He was inducted into the Vijay Rupani government in the afternoon but his portfolio has not been announced.
Bavaliya tendered his resignation as Jasdan MLA to Speaker Rajendra Trivedi after a brief meeting with Rupani at his residence early in the day. Bavaliya then headed to the BJP headquarters, Shree Kamlam, where he was formally inducted into the party by its state unit president Jitu Vaghani.
The move came as a setback to the state Congress, being run by a young leadership, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Within hours of the development, former Jasdan MLA from the BJP and Koli leader Bhola Gohil joined the Congress.
Bavalia who wields considerable clout in the Koli community, which constitutes over 22 per cent of Gujarat’s 60-million population, alleged that caste politics for vote bank by the central leadership was a hurdle to serve his constituents.
“Rahul Gandhi (Congress president) practices caste politics for vote bank. This didn’t allow me to serve my constituency. I have been carefully observing the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi is leading the nation towards development. I have faith in Modi, Shah (BJP president Amit Shah) and the state leadership,” Bavaliya said after joining the BJP.
“Bavaliya is a grassroots leader and he will help the BJP to further strengthen its base,” said Vaghani.
Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) president Amit Chavda, on the other hand, accused him of “betrayal” for “personal gains”. “Bavaliya joined the BJP for personal gains. He has betrayed his voters and the Koli community that elected him,” he said.
Bavaliya had met Rahul Gandhi less than a fortnight ago reportedly to express his unhappiness over the state of affairs in the Gujarat Congress under the young leadership of president Chavda and leader of opposition Paresh Dhanani.
His resignation comes days after another heavyweight and working president Indranil Rajyaguru quit all the posts in the Congress.
With two more MLAs – Javeed Pirzada and Vikram Madam – having expressed unhappiness in the party recently, Dhanani and Chavda face a serious challenge to get the house in order within six months of coming at the helm. All these four MLAs represent the Saurashtra region where the Congress made major inroads in the 2017 assembly elections.
In the run-up to the December 2017 polls, couple of senior Congress leaders, including Shankersinh Vaghela, left the party. But the Congress managed to win 77 seats – its best tally since 1995 – while restricting the BJP to 99 seats in the 182-member House.