24 hours to Gujarat voting day and BJP doesn't have a vision document yet
BJP is yet come out with its manifesto in Gujarat even though campaigning for the first phase of polls has ended. Is BJP taking its stronghold in the state for granted?
In Short
- BJP, ruling party in Gujarat for 22 years, yet to release its manifesto for Gujarat Assembly Elections 2017
- BJP: fairly 'decent' manifesto is already in place since four days atleast.
- Congress released its manifesto last week
On Thursday evening as campaigning for the first phase of polls ended, voters in Gujarat were waiting with bated breath - not for Mani Shankar Aaiyar's apology but for something that would make a difference in their lives - the BJP's vision document, its manifesto.
In a rare occurrence, the ruling BJP, that has been in power for 22 years in the state, has not found it important to make any more promises to people about what it would do if it returned to power. Reliable sources in the BJP said a fairly 'decent' manifesto is already in place for at least four days.
"This is a real mystery. There is really no reason for the party to not release the document. The only reason one can think of is the neech controversy, that the party wouldn't have wanted the media's attention to get diverted from the high octane drama," the source said. BJP leader Bhupendra Yadav just nodded noncommittally when asked about the absence of the manifesto. "It will come" is all he said.
The issue is a little nuanced. Informed sources in the Election Commission said if the party releases its manifesto in a region that's not going to polls on Saturday, and also if the promises are general in nature and not specific to a seat, it would not be a violation of Model Code of Conduct. However, the party does make itself vulnerable to complaints from the opposition.
Whether BJP finally releases the manifesto or not on Friday, this has brought to fore the significance they attach to the vision document. With so little time left, candidates would not be in a position to disseminate the party's holistic vision in campaigning.
Congress released its manifesto earlier this week, in which it categorically included the promise of reservation they had earlier made to the Patidar community. One speculation is BJP could also have something similar up its sleeve, and it would hence want to keep it for the last minute as its trump card. The flip side is if it doesn't have a similar promise, the BJP manifesto will be directly pitched against the Congress' and it will come up short.
BJP spokespersons Bharat Pandya and Yamal Vyas refused to comment on their story.
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