The leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have often asserted that the party has adopted a ‘no-repeat’ formula. The list of poll candidates released on Thursday, however, makes it clear that the party simply cannot ignore strongmen. All that matters is ‘winnability’, a term the party often uses to justify exclusion of the members of the minority community.
The party has fielded 11 ministers from the Vijay Rupani government, who had been dropped from the government in an attempt to curb potential anti-incumbency during the Covid-19 pandemic period.
The party has fielded 11 ministers from the Vijay Rupani government, who had been dropped from the government in an attempt to curb potential anti-incumbency during the Covid-19 pandemic period.
Of the 23 members in the Rupani ministry, the BJP is counting on Ganpat Vasava from Mangrol in South Gujarat, Jayesh Ravadiya from Jetpur, Kunvarji Bavaliya from Jasdan, Jawahar Chavda from Manavadar, Parshottam Solanki from Bhavnagar Rural and Kishor Kanani from Varachha to win their seats.
Candidates like Kolileader Solanki are an irresistible force as they enjoy support from their community and often find a berth in BJP ministries. Also, the party could not ignore leaders such as Bavaliya and Chavda, who crossed over from the Congress in the last term, largely due to their appeal in Saurashtra among their Koli and Ahir communities, respectively.
