Gandhinagar, 24 October 2014

Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel today followed exact schedule of former Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Gujarati new year day.

When Narendrabhai was Chief Minister, he used to visit Panchdev Mandir and Governor house in Gandhinagar in the morning every year on Gujarati new year day.Modi would later receive greetings from people at community hall near Chief Minister’s bungalow in Gandhinagar. As a Chief Minister, Narendra Modi would also visit Bhadrakali mandir and receive greetings from citizens at Shahibaug Circuit house compound in Ahmedabad. Modi followed this schedule even on last Gujarati new year day as a Chief Minister.

As a Chief Minister, Anandiben Patel today followed exactly same schedule. She too visited not any other mandir but Panchdev Mandir in Gandhinagar in morning. She too visited Governor. She too visited Bhadrakali mandir in Ahmedabad, and she too received greetings of new year from citizens at community hall in Gandhinagar and at Shahibaug Circuit house in Ahmedabad.

One of the Gujarati new channels E TV Gujarati in its morning bulletins and ticker space continuously mentioned that Anandiben’s public reception function on Gujarati new year was dull, and it attracted fewer people. E TV also mentioned that duration of Anandiben’s public reception function was an hour less than same function of Narendrabhai in the past on Gujarati new year day.

Anandiben has time and again said in her interviews that her comparison with earlier Chief Minister Shri Narendra Modi is injustice to her. While Narendrabhai was completely a different personality, the other Chief Ministers of Gujarat, present and in future will continue to receive dull response compared to Narendrabhai in such functions obviously.

At Bhadrakali mandir, security arrangements were obviously lighter compared to Mod, and therefore people had chance to shake hand with the Chief Minister, photographs of which are presented on this page.