JAIPUR: For the first time, Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister and Ashok Gehlot as Chief Minister will be seen together on a public stage. Modi will on Tuesday hold a rally at Mangrah Dham in the heart of tribal Rajasthan, along with the chief ministers of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
This meeting, coming just ahead of the Gujarat elections, is being seen as the BJP’s effort to woo tribal votes in all the three states. Mangrah Dham in Banswara district is a popular pilgrimage place for the tribals of all the three states that share their borders. Besides Gehlot, MP CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel will attend the event.
The Rajasthan BJP is working overtime to make preparations for this rally where Modi will pay homage to hundreds of tribals who were martyred 109 years ago. The hills of Mangarh hold special significance for the Bhils and other tribes of the three states. During the struggle for Independence, the tribal communities fought valiantly for a long time, and on November 17, 1913, over 1.5 lakh Bhils under the leadership of Govind Guru were attacked by the British, leading to the Mangarh massacre where about 1,500 tribals were shot dead.
Modi is likely to make an announcement, granting the status of a national monument to the tribal Dham. Recently, Gehlot had also written to the PM to give Mangarh Dham the status of a national monument.
Modi had come to this place 10 years ago when he was the Gujarat chief minister. The programme of the PM has been made with the aim of deepening the BJP’s penetration amid the vote bank in the tribal-dominated districts of Santrampur, Dahod, Mahisagar and Panchmahal in Gujarat. The BJP units of Dungarpur, Banswara, Pratapgarh and Udaipur have been busy preparing for the PM’s visit.
“In Gujarat, tribal voters are dominant in 35-40 seats. During his Gujarat tour in the past, Modi had made a brief visit to Sirohi district of Rajasthan, and promised to be back soon. That promise will be fulfilled now. Rallies in Mangarh affect the politics of the three states simultaneously. Therefore, PM Modi’s visit is very important for the BJP,” a senior party leader said on the condition of anonymity.
Besides Gujarat, Assembly elections are to scheduled be held in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh next year. In Udaipur, Banswara, Dungarpur and Pratapgarh districts of Rajasthan, 16 seats are reserved for the ST category. The BJP hopes that the PM’s rally will help them make inroads into the Congress’ traditional vote bank in this area.