Ahmedabad: BJP president Amit Shah filed his nomination papers for the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat on Saturday after holding a grand show of strength. Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitely along with NDA allies Prakash Singh Badal and Uddhav Thackeray shared the stage with Mr Shah at a public meeting before heading to the Gandhinagar district collector’s office to file the papers.
“I started my political journey from here in 1982 and have spent my entire life in the BJP. If you remove the BJP from my life, there will be a zero in it. I will try my best to carry forward the legacy of Advaniji,” Mr Shah said while addressing a huge gathering of party workers and supporters from the constituency previously represented by party veteran L.K. Advani.
He said, “The entire country, from Arunachal to Gujarat and from south to north, is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Wherever I go in the country, I hear only Modi, Modi, Modi. The people feel that the country is in safe hands.”
Mr Thackeray said, “Many of you are surprised to see me here but let me tell you that we have sorted out our differences and we are fighting this election together.”
While praising Mr Shah, Mr Badal said that Gujarat was lucky to have given the Prime Minister and the president of the ruling party. Targeting the opposition on its ‘chowkidar chor hai’ jibe, Mr Rajnath Singh said, “Chowkidar is pure, not chor.”
Before filing his papers, Mr Shah held a massive road show from the Sardar Patel statue in Naranpura to the Patidar Chowk in Ghatlodia.
Almost all state party leaders, right from Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, were present. Mr Shah was welcomed and greeted by supporters during the road show.
Many believe that the venues were planned to show that the BJP and Mr Shah enjoy full support of the powerful Patidar voters. The Assembly segments of Naranpura and Ghatlodia, part of the Gandhinagar constituency, have a sizeable number of Patidar voters. The commuity was believed to be upset with the BJP and particularly with Mr Shah on the reservation issue.
Mr Jaitely, while talking to mediapersons, expressed the hope that the BJP would win all 26 seats in the state. The presence of the top NDA leadership is being seen by observers as Mr Shah’s stature as the most powerful leader after Mr Modi, ending the era of Mr Advani.
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