Gujarat election a litmus test of PM’s popularity and prestige

SUNIL NEGI
Gujarat is really lucky to have Narendra as the Indian prime minister, though he has contested the parliamentary election from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. While the election of the state assembly of Gujarat is due in just three months to come, Gujarat is lucky to have the long awaited Sardar Sarovar Dam inaugurated by the PM just few days after the highly over ambitious high speed Bullet train project with a whopping Japanese investment of Rupees 1lakh 10 thousand crores with a mere n negligible 0.1 percent interest of the incoming fifty years, almost free of cost was launched and prime minister Narendra Modiextending gratitude to Japan while addressing the massive gathering at Sabarmati, Gujarat on the day of its inaguration in the presence of Japanese PM Shinzo Abe. Prime minister Modi’ s second visit to Gujarat in just a week’s time speaks of the seriousness of the former to ensure that BJP stands victorious in his home state by all counts.

The Gujarat election results would be infact the litmus test for prime minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, the BJP’s national chief who’ ve just five months ago brought victory for their party in the largest state of the country, UP, breaking the political stronghold of the then ruling Samajwadi party having tremendous hold amongst the muslims and the backwards, including the caste dominated Bahujan Samaj Party led by its undisputed leader and former chief UP Behen Mayawati.

BJP is today ruling in majority of the states of the country having broken the political backbone of Congress in several states. BJP governments are today ruling in Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar as a coalition partner with JD Nitish, Uttarakhand, Chattisgarh, Manipur, Goa etc.

Though Delhi and Punjab are ruled by AAP and Congress. Therefore, after a pro Modi winning spree in majority of the states, the BJP high command and prime minister Modi is in no mood to loose Gujarat, their traditional stronghold where Narendra Modi and BJP has been weilding power since the last one and a half decade. It was Gujarat only that inspired and led Modi to become the prime minister of the country with a historic majority alongwith the overall support of other states of the country.

For BJP however it seems to be a cake walk say Modi supporters as the former Gujarat CM and Congress heavy weight Shanker Singh Vaghela has left Congress and formed the third front which may further not only erode Congress’s credibility but also create divisions in anti BJP vote banks. May be as the state elections come nearer, he may hobnob with BJP keeping in view his harsh opposition and annoyance with the Congress leadership at the centre. Moreover, seven of the Congress MLA’ s have already defected to BJP during the states’ biennial election opposing the candidature of Sonia Gandhi’s political secretary, AHMED PATEL who’d however won his RS seat despite all odds.

However, it still remains to be seen what impact would Hardik Patel, a powerful mass leader of the Patel community put in Gujarat election?