Chaos in Gujarat Congress over new appointments

The reshuffle move of Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) organisation resulted into chaos within Gujarat Congress as large number of party workers staged protest at GPCC headquarters in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

Sources close to the development said that nearly 200 Congress workers shouted slogans against appointment of Shashikant Patel as Ahmedabad city president. They wanted senior Congress leader Nirav Baxi as the city president, said a GPCC executive committee member adding that the agitating Congress workers also damaged GPCC President Amit Chavda’s office.

On Monday evening GPCC had announced names of 12 new district presidents including that of Ahmedabad and Rajkot. Within couple of hours of the announcement, Rajkot City president and former MLA Indranil Rajguru tendered his resignation.

In 2012 assembly polls Rajguru won from Rajkot -3 assembly constituency which is considered as BJP bastion. In the last assembly elections, he opted to contest against sitting Chief Minister Vijay Rupani from Rajkot West constituency. Though he was defeated, but gave tough fight to Rupani.  He also drew attention as richest Congress candidate by declaring wealth over Rs 140 crore in 2017 Gujarat polls.

Apparently unhappy with GPCC leadership’s decision, Rajguru claimed that there was complete malfunction in party’s Gujarat unit. He however appreciated Rahul Gandhi’s leadership and said that Congress party’s principles were best among all parties in India. On Tuesday 17 Congress councillors of Rajkot Municipal Corporation have come out openly in support of Rajguru and demanded to reinstate him as Rajkot City Congress president. 

He went on to say that those who gave speeches from BJP platform during 2017 assembly polls have been nominated at state level by strategically removing party loyalists. He said that when he tried to point out the fact, he got surprising reply from an important functionary that this is how the party would run! He however denied joining ruling BJP saying that he would never join the saffron brigade.Not only Rajguru, Koli leader and former MP Kunvarji Bavalia, former Jamnagar MLA Vikram Maadam and sitting MLA  from Wankaner Javid Pirzada from Saurashtra region are unhappy with the current leadership of GPCC.

The resignation of Rajguru could hit Congress hard in coming Lok Sabha elections, especially in Saurashtra region, with several senior leaders from this region voicing their concerns with workings of state Congress chief Amit Chavda. Recently, Congress leaders from Saurashtra, Kunvarji Bavalia and Vikram Maadam have openly expressed their resentment with state party leadership. There has been discontent in Bhavnagar district also.