BJP, Cong evenly poised in Rajkot

RAJKOT: Jitu Mehta, Yuva BJP leader and known Keshubhai loyalist, had been unhappy with the way he had been denied ticket for the Rajkot-1 seat.
However, 10 days down the line, he says he has no regrets as the saffron brigade faces an uphill task in Rajkot city.
Though this could be a case of sour grapes, there are many in Rajkot BJP who echo the same opinion.
If the crowd at Saturday''s public meeting addressed by the deputy primeminister at Dhebar Chowk is any indication of the things to come, then the BJP is in for a rude shock. Advani''s arrival at the venue had to be delayed as there weren''t enough people to listen to him.
Eventually, when Advani addressed the crowd, he refrained from mentioning the Godhra incident in his speech. Even other BJP leaders concentrated on the Kashmir issue, rather than Godhra.
Though the city unit of the BJP has been a hotbed of dissident activities, it has managed to mend fences for Rajkot-1 and Rajkot-2. The only sore point is Rajkot-3, where a new candidate has been put forward against a seasoned campaigner Shanta Chavda of the Congress.
According to sources, Vajubhai should manage to scrape through in Rajkot-2, which is a BJP stronghold. In Rajkot-1, BJP candidate Tapu Limbasiya may benefit from NCP candidate Hemang Vasavada cutting into Congress'' Manohersinh Jadeja''s votes.
While the BJP is cruising in Rajkot-1 and Rajkot-2, its candidate in Rajkot-3 (rural), Siddharth Parmar, lacks a following there. Even if one goes by the caste combinations, the BJP is sitting pretty as it has a mass support base having ruled the civic body for almost 25 years.
During the last elections, the BJP hadwon all the three seats, but it may be difficult to have a repeat performance this time round.
"The BJP claims that it brought Narmada waters to Rajkot, but they should not have fooled the people of Rajkot by supplying water from Mahi river and passed it off as Narmada waters," says Amit Parekh, a trader living in the posh Kalawad road area.
Says Raju Punatar, a manufacturer at the Shapar-Veraval industrial belt, "It is time we go in for a change and see what the Congress, which has been out of power for almost a decade, can do for us."
Politics in Rajkot has come a full circle. It was the Congress, which was voted out of office due to non-performance, and this time it seems that the people may do the same with the BJP for failing to deliver the goods. However, only timewillwhat the outcome will be.