After 24 years, C L Patel loses CVM chairmanship

Vadodara/ Anand: Dr C L Patel – the man who virtually controlled the education sector in education town Vallabh Vidyanagar in Anand district for over two decades – on Wednesday lost chairmanship of the Charutar Vidya Mandal (CVM) – the oldest and richest educational trust of Central Gujarat.
Founded in 1946, CVM manages around 50 educational institutes starting from kindergarten to post-graduate level and research institutes, most of them affiliated to Sardar Patel University, in Vallabh Vidyanagar and satellite township adjacent to it – New Vallabh Vidyanagar.

A conservative estimate puts the trust’s assets to be worth over Rs 500 crore.

Popularly know as Dr CL, the 83-year-old had served eight straight terms as chairman of the trust since 1994. He was defeated by a margin of 430 votes against Bhikhu Patel, who bagged 1,198 votes in his favour while Dr CL bagged 768 votes.

The elections on Wednesday were held for two top posts of CVM including that of chairman and vice-president in which 2,043 members of the trust had exercised their voting right.

While Bhikhu Patel got elected as new chairman for next three years, the education trust also has got a new vice-president (VP) in Manish Patel, who defeated sitting VP Hasmukh Patel by a margin of 630 votes.

While Manish Patel bagged 1,298 votes in his favour and will serve for a tenure of four years, Hasmukh Patel bagged 668 votes.

The results are significant given the fact that Dr C L who was the third chairman of CVM after Vallabh Vidyanagar’s founder Bhaikaka (Bhailalbhai Patel) and former finance secretary of the country late Dr H M Patel, had never lost any election in his life.

Bhaikaka, who with the inspiration of Sardar Patel had laid foundation of the education town had served as CVM’s founder chairman between 1947 and 1958.

Between 1994 and 2009, Dr C L used to get elected uncontested on the chairman’s post. In 2009 it was for the first time that Dr C L had faced a tough challenge to retain the post when Bhikhu Patel was in poll fray and had lost the elections by a margin of just ten votes.

But later both in 2012 and 2015, Dr C L had smoothly won in the poll battles – first against Vikram Patel, Bhaikaka’s grandson and chairman of the Charotar Gramodhar Sahakari Mandal and later against chartered accountant K G Patel.

The results will have an impact both on the internal politics of the trust and functioning of many educational institutes which over the decades have become a brand.