Cong men begin lobbying for LS ticket

VADODARA: Senior Congress leaders from the city are travelling north these days. Delhi is high on the travelling itinerary of the leaders who have started pulling right strings ahead of Lok Sabha polls.
Meanwhile, intense lobbying has begun among city Congress leaders for getting Lok Sabha poll ticket for Vadodara seat. Different groups have already approached their contacts in Gandhinagar and Delhi to push for their candidates for the seat.
"Several Congress leaders have visited Gandhinagar and Delhi over last few weeks. While the election dates are yet to be announced, none of them wants to take any chance," said a Congress leader.
"Many are also suggesting names of candidates to senior leaders who have been visiting the city regularly. Our party hasn't won polls on this seat for last three terms. No one is sure whether the party would choose a young candidate or someone experienced," the leader added.
Sources in the party said that Satyajit Gaekwad, who had contested from the seat last time, is the frontrunner for the ticket. Though the seat has always been a BJP stronghold, Gaekwad had given tough competition to BJP candidate Jaya Thakkar in 2004 Lok Sabha polls. Thakkar had won the seat by a slender margin of 6,000 votes.
"Names of a few other leaders like city Congress president Suresh Patel, Ashwin Shah and Ghanshyam Patel too are doing rounds," sources said.
"Gaekwad may get another chance to contest the polls. However, the voting equation has changed this time as Congress strongholds in Vadodara seat have merged with other seats after the delimitation exercise. It may make things tougher for Congress," a party leader stated.
"The Padra and rural Assembly seats were Congress strongholds apart from Savli and Waghodia that too had lot of Congress followers. Now, these are not in Vadodara and the urban areas have always voted for BJP," he added.
Notwithstanding the statistics, Congress man Ghanshyam Patel had visited Delhi along with senior leader Dalsukh Prajapati to lobby for the ticket few days ago. The fight for ticket is expected to intensify in coming days with names of female candidates too being discussed.
tushar.tere@timesgroup.com