Thakre banking on grassroots support to unseat Gadkari
Vikas Thakre, 57, faces the onerous task of taking on Union Minister and incumbent MP Nitin Gadkari as the Congress candidate for the upcoming Lok Sabha election in Nagpur.
The Nagpur West MLA and former Nagpur Mayor is banking on his strong ties with the local community and his party’s longstanding presence in the region to come up trumps in the poll.
In an interview with The Hindu on Friday, Mr. Thakre pointed out that the BJP has won the seat only thrice since Independence, each time through “evident communal polarisation”. “In 1996, Banwarilal Purohit won. In 2014 and 2019, Mr. Gadkari won on the back of the nationwide ‘Modi wave’. The BJP then used figures like Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev
Vikas Thakre, Congress candidate for the Nagpur seat, campaigning in Jaitala Chowk.
to discredit the Congress. This time, there is collective awareness among voters that the election is about defending democracy. This will prevent division of votes and strengthen our position,” he said.
‘Strong vote base’
Challenging the perception of a onesided contest, he cited instances of leaders like Indira Gandhi and Atal
Bihari Vajpayee facing electoral setbacks and said Mr. Gadkari’s “overconfidence” could lead to his undoing. He countered claims of the Minister winning by a margin of five lakh votes by pointing to the Congress’s strong vote base and 13 past victories in the constituency.
Mr. Thakre traces his political journey back to his days as a corporator in the city, which is home to the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the BJP. “The fight is clearly between the Congress and the BJP. During my campaign, people have been talking about how the BJP has been killing democracy, destroying the Opposition, and is being used as a ‘washing machine’ by corrupt leaders. Voters are eagerly waiting to overthrow the Modi government,” he said on returning home after campaigning for the day.
“I’ve served as a corporator, Mayor, and now as an MLA. So, I understand the genuine issues people face. I know each of them by name and their problems. Having a lofty vision alone won’t help him [Mr. Gadkari] win the election. One must maintain connections with the common man, not just cater to businessmen,” Mr. Thakre said, showing the over 25,000 contacts stored in his mobile phone.
While the BJP stalwart boasts of bringing infrastructural development like the metro and flyovers to Nagpur, Mr. Thakre drew attention to the lack of basic amenities such as water and electricity in various parts of the city. “Will you sit in your house and stare at the metro train when your taps run dry and the electricity meter is running like a bullet train? Expenses have gone up drastically, but not income. Over 70% of the city’s population belongs to the middle class or lower middle class. In their localities, water is supplied only for an hour a day,” he said.
‘Significant edge’
The Congress leader pointed out that his opponent’s lack of accessibility has given him a significant edge. “As a Minister, he remains in Delhi and seldom engages with the people when he visits Nagpur. He’s detached from their issues and ground reality. Recently, sensing the unfavourable situation, he intensified his campaign. However, he lacks manpower,” Mr. Thakre said, adding that at least 10,000 members of the RSS would vote for him in the upcoming election.
‘United front’
“The entire Congress party stands united in backing my candidacy. We have garnered support from the INDIA bloc allies. The Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi has also pledged its support. Even the AIMIM (All India MajliseIttehadul Muslimeen) has chosen not to field a candidate in this constituency. This unified front ensures that there will be no fragmentation of votes, which has historically been detrimental to the Congress,” he said.