Surat: A day after BJP swept panchayat polls across the tribal-dominated South Gujarat, including tribal strongman Chhotu Vasava's bastion in Bharuch and Narmada district, the saffron party has now trained its gun towards Chhotu Vasava.
“Chhotu Vasava’s son got defeated and now Chhotubhai will lose. It's the beginning of an end for the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP),” said state BJP chief, C R Paatil, at a brief stopover at Bharuch railway station on Wednesday.
Sources say that this was for the first time, when BJP leaders have started attacking Chhotu Vasava directly. Earlier on Wednesday morning, while responding to Jaghadia MLA Chhotu Vasava's allegations that there were problems in EVM, BJP MP from Bharuch, Mansukh Vasava, refuted those allegations.
“Chhotu Vasava has misguided the tribal populations for the past many years. His accusations are baseless. EVMs are being used across the country. Why Chhotu Vasava is not speaking when his wife Sarlaben won on Bharuch district panchayat's Dharoli seat? Tribals of Bharuch and Narmada district have lost faith in Chhotu Vasava's BTP. We have put a development agenda before the tribals and they accepted it,” said Mansukh Vasava .
On Tuesday’s panchayat results, out of the 34 seats in Bharuch district panchayat the BJP won 27 seats , while BTP won 3 and Congress won four seats. Bharuch and Narmada districts are considered as bastions of Chhotu Vasava and his son Mahesh Vasava, who is also an MLA from Dediyapada.
Vasava’s BTP joined hands with Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) ahead of panchayat polls to garner minority votes, but suffered defeats at the hand of BJP.