Will Asaram factor throw a spanner in Prabha Taviad’s party?

All eyes are on the 26 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state because of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. However, there are other factors that make the fight interesting especially for seats like Dahod, Jamnagar, Mehsana and Surendranagar.

The self-styled godman, Asaram, and his son Narayan Sai are in jail. However, his devotees can play spoilsport in the Dahod Lok Sabha seat. Prabha Taviad, the sitting MP and the Congress candidate from Dahod, had staged protests against Asaram when the rape case was filed against the godman in Jaipur. “Asaram has a strong fan following in the tribal areas and they are unhappy with Taviad for her protest. So, there is a strong possibility of them working against her,” claimed sources.

Moreover, Taviad’s own party colleagues and former MLAs like Deeta Macchar and Bachu Kishori are likely to damage her chances. It is believed that Macchar has family relations with Jaswant Bhabhor, the BJP candidate and Limkheda MLA. So, he may not go all out for the Congress, said sources. BJP has made a smart move in Jamnagar by fielding Poonam Maadam against Congress’s Vikram Maadam. Both the candidates belong to the same family. But the family feud has now turned into a full-scale political rivalry. Though Poonam does not enjoy the same influence in the Ahir community like her uncle Vikram, she can get Patel votes along with half of the Kshatriya votes by virtue of being a BJP candidate.

The Mehsana seat is interesting from the point of view of infighting in the disciplined BJP. It is believed that Kadva Patidar leaders wanted their representation as they are in a majority in this constituency.

Moreover, the BJP candidate and sitting MP Jayshree Patel has been facing protest as she is close to revenue minister Anandi Patel. Incidentally, the Congress has fielded Jiva Patel, who was defeated in the last Lok Sabha election, again. Old rivals from the Patidar community will lead to a division of votes and other castes will play a major role despite being in a minority. The Koli Patel community voters will decide the fate of Surendranagar. Moreover, political master and disciple Soma Koli Patel and Devji Fatepara have locked horns as Congress and BJP candidates, respectively.

Fatepara is Koli while a majority of the voters are Koli Patel. If Soma Koli Patel wins the confidence of his community, he can win the seat despite BJP having six of the seven assembly segments in its kitty.  

Soma Koli Patel had won the Surendranagar seat by  narrow margin in 2009. He also won the Limbdi seat in 2012 assembly election. But his magic failed in by-election where his son was defeated.