BJP’s social coalition cracking in Gujarat? CM Anandiben Patel may be undoing what PM Narendra Modi did

GANDHINAGAR: Did Hira Solanki’s recent public display of wrath reflect possible cracks in the social coalition that the ruling BJP has put together over the past decade or so in Gujarat? As long as Narendra Modi was chief minister, he was able to keep a lid on community divisions and make sure these didn’t spill over, say political observers. But now that he’s moved to Delhi as PM, CM Anandiben Patel may be having a tough time making sure everybody gets along.
State assembly member Solanki is the younger brother of Purshottam Solanki, said to be involved in a Rs 400-crore fisheries scam and an exstate cabinet minister. He was recently inducted into the government but only as an MoS that his younger brother construed as an insult to the Koli community that the family belongs to. The younger Solanki organised a community meeting on the outskirts of Ahmedabad and sought an appointment with the CM. It’s learnt that Solanki was pacified after being assured that members of the community will get adequate representation in board and corporation.

Not everyone can have the kind of firm grip that Modi had on local affairs, said a member of his party.

“While Narendrabhai in the last 12 years could maintain a strong grip over the community based politics, it is not easy for everyone to have similar control,” said a senior BJP worker from Saurashtra. “What we are seeing now in Gujarat is the obvious fallout of the power transition.”

The dominant community in Gujarat is that of the Patels or Patidars. It was their alienation from Congress in the mid-eighties, due to the infamous KHAM (Kshatriya, Harijan, Adivasi, Muslim) experiment by ex-CM Madhavsinh Solanki, that fuelled BJP’s rise in the state.

The community has benefited from BJP rule, says sociologist Gaurang Jani. For instance, seven of the 23 members of the newly expanded Gujarat cabinet are members of the community. “Other communities are waiting for their share of development,” Jani said. “With no big elections in the vicinity, there are appointments in various positions to be made and positions filled up, so such caste-based muscle-flexing will continue… In the process, the communities will also try to firm up their positions for better bargaining power for the next election as well.” Patels argue that such consolidation is necessary in the Indian context.

“Every community has its own aspirations and requirements. What is happening in Gujarat can be called casteist,” said Naresh Patel, one of the bestknown members of the community. He runs the Khodal Dham temple, a nerve centre of Patidar politics. “At the ground level, there is not much of option as the reality here is unlike western democracies, where everyone stands on equal footing,” he said. “Through such experiments, strong leaders may emerge and that eventually may benefit the community.”

Others sections are looking to emulate the kind of sway the Patels have.

“The communities have their own political awareness and aspirations and through such experiments, people are testing the waters,” said the BJP member from Saurashtra.

Discontent is also simmering among the Brahmins. They believe no powerful leader from the community, from Haren Pandiya to Harin Pathak, has been allowed to rise.