Gujarat poll: PAAS infighting exposed after first list announced, Surat office of Congress ransacked

Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti(PAAS) has opposed the first list released by Congress party for the candidates in Gujarat polls. The party made the announcement on Sunday night  to avoid protests or confrontation but PAAS leaders not only opposed the list but their workers ransacked Congress candidate's office in Surat. The workers of Congress and PAAS volunteers attacked each other with kicks and punches there. 

PAAS leader Dinesh Bambhaniya went to Gujarat Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki's house in Ahmedabad to discuss details of seat sharing.

PAAS had demanded around 10 tickets from Congress, while the party gave only three. The Congress gave tickets to PAAS conveners Lalit Vasoya from Dhoraji in Rajkot, Amit Thummar from Junagadh and Nilesh Kumbhani from Kamrej seat in Surat city.

Dinesh Bambhaniya struck a discordant note from Solanki's residence saying they do not endorse the list, He said, "We were not taken in confidence for the ticket allocation. If Congress wanted to give ticket to any of PAAS members, they should have conveyed the message to PAAS. We appeal to all PAAS leaders who got tickets from Congress, to not file their nomination. If any of them do not abide by PAAS' stand, we will make them lose."

#WATCH Surat: Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti workers clash with Congress workers over ticket distribution (earlier visuals) pic.twitter.com/uz5fx9oXIc

— ANI (@ANI) November 20, 2017

PAAS had wanted tickets for Manoj Panara from Morbi and Dilip Sabva from Surat. The PAAS convener from Surat Dharmik Malaviya said, "The people who are chosen by Congress for candidature have the image of hooligans and we do not agree with these names. If they do not surrender their tickets, we will close the gates of their offices." The situation was tense similarly in Junagadh. Here, Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said, "There is some confusion among PAAS leaders, but we are trying our best to remove that confusion. Everything will be settled in a few hours."

The Congress headquarter in Ahmedabad was closed for security reasons. The leaders of Congress also left the office quickly to avoid any altercation. When Bambhaniya and other PAAS leaders reached the Congress office in Ahmedabad late in the night, the police promptly detained them. In the evening, PAAS and Congress leaders including Bharatsinh Solanki had held a meeting at Congress office. Leaders from both organisations had agreed to a formula based on consent.