Swami makes it difficult for Siddharth Patel

DABHOI, Vadodara district: His father is Chimanbhai Patel and his mother former Union minister Urmilaben Patel. So, what does the other party do to stop him? Seek divine blessing and earthly help from a bevy of ''sadhus’ from a formidable religious sect in Gujarat.
As Siddharth Patel seeks re-election for a second term from Dabhoi, BJP candidate Chandrakant Patel says he is banking on the Hindu ''vichardhara''.And, helping him is a bevy of ''sadhus'' from the Haridham of Sokhda, a sect led by Hariprasad Swamiji.
The BJP office here is teeming with ''sadhus'' from Sokhda, and they are fanning out in the rural areas to conduct ''bhajan-kirtan'' and asking questions like "Sochiye, kaun apki raksha kar sakta hai?� Chandrakant Patel, a professor of philosophy in the local CNPF Arts and Science College is clear about the philosophy on which the battle of ballots is being fought this time. "It''s a clash of ''vichardahara''. While we are fighting on the lines of Hindu ''vichardhara'', the Congress is doing all that is opposite. See what they are doing to the country. They are going soft on militants in Jammu and Kashmir, and are compromising on safety of the nation," says Patel, who rose from the ranks of the RSS here. "Well, there has been no industrialisation in Dabhoi, no GIDC here," he says as an afterthought.
He admits that the "riots here have created a distinct wave". And, he is banking on the Adivasi vote, that comprise about 33 per cent of the electorate, which he feels has taken to the Hindu cause in a big way. Dabhoi faced the brunt of post-Godhra madness too, with rioting in the city and two deaths in nearby Sanor.
The ''sadhus'' from Sokhda too have a job cut out. "We are not here to campaign for any party or individual," clarifies Guruprasad Swamiji of Haridham. "We are not campaigning for Narendra Modi, but his school of thought, his vision about Hindutva. We are not in any way politically motivated," he adds. There are 12 ''sadhus'' with him, who are conducting ''kirtan'', ''aradhana'', ''pravachan'' and a Yuva Jagruti Abhiyan.
They are also telling the people that there is a need for people like Sardar Patel and Veer Savarkar. They are telling the villagers that Narendra Modi does not have a family and the five crore Gujarati population is his ''parivar''. People are being told about Modi''s fearlessness, about he wanted to go and unfurl the Tricolour in Jammu and Kashmir on August 15, and how he refuses to wear a bullet-proof jacket despite threat to his life. "Jo sanskruti ka upasak ho, use hi haq hota hai gaddi pe baithme ki," says the Swamiji.
But Siddharth Patel is unfazed. At an election meeting in Siddhpur, a village in the centre of this cotton-growing countryside, he talks about how the government decision to import cotton has hit the farmers. He says that the "riots were engineered", but that would not have an effect on his prospects.
"I fought from Dabhoi in 1998, and not my father''s constituency as I wanted to create a constituency for myself and I have worked hard to provide amenities like roads and drinking water in this drought-hit region," he says.
Like its brethren in neighbouring Chhota Udepur,Dabhoi tribals are talking about a Hindu wave too, and communal rumblings are being heard. Like 80-year-old Ratanbhai Baria of Siddhpur, who is angry "because the Congress carries out a policy of minority appeasement".
So is Shantilal Tadvi of a neighbouring village. As December 12 nears, the fight between the two "schools of thought" hots up.