AHMEDABAD: BJP in Gujarat is at the brink of a huge crisis as internal conflicts are rife within the party over candidates announced in five of the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat.
This is the first time in 22 years, the saffron party is facing resentment from its own workers in the Lok Sabha polls.
What initially sparked as dissent in one constituency has now spread to about half a dozen others, including Sabarkantha, Rajkot, Vadodara, and Valsad districts, posing a serious threat for the party.
Additionally, circulating on social media is a letter addressed to Gujarat BJP state President CR Patil, urging for a change in the party's candidate for the Junagadh constituency.
In the letter, a Jan Sangh worker has highlighted various concerns about BJP's candidate Rajesh Chudasama.
"He has not done a single eye-catching work in Junagadh, nor has he taken any interest in conveying the central and state government schemes to the beneficiaries," the letter reads. The letter also detailed other concerns about the candidate and demanded his replacement.
Following resistance from local leaders, Ranjan Bhatt, the BJP candidate in Vadodara, was replaced. However, there is now growing demand to replace the new candidate, Dr. Hemang Joshi. Sources indicate that several BJP workers had questioned Dr. Hemang's Vadodara roots, claiming that he lacked experience and was involved with the party for just three years.
During a live stream featuring the state president, the worker commented, "It is an insult to Vadodara's women's power; first, they were given the ticket and then withdrawn. What has he contributed to the party?"
Another constituency where conflict has been brewing is Sabarkantha. In this context, a meeting was convened at the Chief Minister's residence today at 11AM to discuss and finalise the Sabarkantha candidate.
Yesterday, Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi visited Sabarkantha amidst protests against the BJP's nominated candidate, Shobnaben Baraiya. Following his visit, sources suggest that the Home Minister submitted a report to the State President and Chief Minister.
Another BJP candidate, Rupala, who is contesting from the Rajkot constituency has become in the bad books of a section of party workers after he allegedly passed derogatory remarks about the Rajput community.
Though Rupala had issued two apologies, efforts persist within the Rajput community to seek his replacement as candidate.
On Saturday, the Rajput Community gave a memorandum to the Collector in Gandhinagar and also urged the BJP to reconsider their choice. Karni Sena leader in Gujarat, Raj Sekhawat, resigned from the BJP in protest on Saturday.
Notably, Kshatriya votes constitute 17 percent of Gujarat's electorate, with the Rajkot constituency alone accounting for over three lakh Kshatriya voters.
Sources indicate that failure to resolve this issue promptly could spell trouble for the BJP.
In another incident, messages were sent through multiple social media channels, addressed to CR Patil and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the replacement of Dhaval Patel, the BJP's nominee for the Valsad constituency, with a new candidate.
The BJP contended that these letters were orchestrated by the opposition, while the Congress denied any association with them.
