Tuesday's Rajya Sabha election for three seats from Gujarat is set to be a thriller, with the outcome unlikely to be known till the very last vote is counted.
With the state Assembly elections just three months away, the RS poll result is likely to have far wider implications on political equations in the state.
It is after almost two decades that a contest is taking place in Rajya Sabha election in Gujarat.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi's political adviser Ahmed Patel is the party's nominee, while the BJP has fielded its national president Amit Shah, Union Minister Smriti Irani, and former Congress MLA Balvantsinh Rajput as its candidates. The counting will begin at 5pm and the results will be declared in the evening itself.
The poll fray has turned into a high-stakes battle with the presence of the BJP president, who was personally involved in chalking out the party's election strategy to snatch one seat from the Congress.
Shah arrived in Ahmedabad on Saturday. On Sunday, he held elaborate discussions with Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and other BJP leaders.
Given the fact that the BJP has 121 MLAs in the 182-member House, Shah and Irani are expected to easily sail through, which means the battle will be between Patel and Rajput, his one-time protégé.
The Congress was expected to easily hold on to its RS seat until three weeks ago. But the situation has turned upside down with the exit of Shankersinh Vaghela, followed by six more MLAs resigning, and six others in rebellion mode.
Ten days ago, stunned by the mass resignations, the Congress whisked away its remaining 44 MLAs to Bengaluru, in a desperate move to avoid further desertions. They were put up at a resort since and returned to Ahmedabad in the wee hours of Monday, only to be taken straight to a resort in Anand from Ahmedabad airport.
For now, the Congress is counting on the votes of these 44 MLAs. However, insiders say the possibility of some of these MLAs cross-voting cannot be ruled out.
With the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) announcing its support for the BJP candidates, the only non-Congress vote Patel may get is of JD(U) MLA Chhotu Vasava.
Vaghela, while announcing his decision to quit the Congress, had said he would vote for Patel. However, Vaghela refused to comment when asked about the same on Monday, but described Patel as a friend.
Understandably, the morale in the Congress camp is quite low, with insiders admitting that chances of a win are quite slim.
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