Moneybags and criminals abound in Gujarat poll fray

ahmedabad — As nominations for the April 30 Lok Sabha elections in the land of Mahatma Gandhi that is Gujarat closed on Wednesday, the list of candidates seemed to be dominated by strange bedfellows whose names are recorded in police files and flesh-pressers who are rolling in money.

The state’s two main parties — the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress — shouted from housetops against money power and criminalisation of politics but suffered no qualms of conscience in fielding several ‘crorepatis’ and tainted politicos.

BJP’s C R Patil, the second richest (total assets Rs 745 million) contestant after Bollywood’s Gujarati actor Paresh Rawal (Rs794 million) from southern Navsari constituency, faces countless cases of forgery, cheating, and other financial irregularities registered in the diamond city of Surat.

The saffron party’s Vitthal Radadia who has declared movable and immovable assets worth Rs60 million has thrown his hat into the ring in Porbandar, Gandhiji’s birthplace but has scores of criminal cases against him, including rioting, criminal assault, damage to public property, criminal intim- idation and death threats. In 10 of these cases, FIRs have been lodged by the police, though all of those cases are pending at present.

Even the Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) candidate from Porbandar, Kandhal Jadeja, is also a ‘crorepati’ owning Rs282 million of assets but has nine FIRs against him.

He is the son of the former dreaded ‘Godmother’ Santok Jadeja and has been charged in cases of serious crimes like smuggling of arms under TADA, criminal assault with intention of murder, kidnapping as well as extortion.

Other BJP candidates who are allegedly involved in serious charges and are also filthy rich are Rajesh Chudasma (Rs52 million) from Junagadh seat, who as per his own affidavit, is involved in a case for which he could be booked for more than two years.

BJP candidate from Amreli, Naran Kachhadiya, is also living large (Rs41 million) but has been named for attempt to murder, criminal conspiracy and booked under the Atrocities Act for using derogatory remarks on caste.

In his affidavit, even BJP veteran and Gandhinagar candidate L K Advani (Rs 70 million) has mentioned that a case related to the Babri Masjid demolition is pending against him.

JD-U’s Kishor Vasava, son of MLA Chhotu Vasava, has also been named in nine FIRs under the Arms Act, besides assault and criminal intimidation.

Prabhu Vasava, who has switched over to the BJP in February, has also been booked unde the sections of the Atrocities Act and was also allegedly involved in two cases of assault.

Similarly, present BJP MP and Lok Sabha candidate from Panchamahal, Prabhatsinh Chauhan, has also been booked in the cases of criminal conspiracy and allegedly involved in criminal breach of trust.

Congress candidate Himmatsinh Patel, who will take on BJP’s Paresh Rawal and Congress candidate Madhusudan Mistry standing against BJP’s prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi, are also allegedly involved in unlawful assembly as well as damaging public property.

Another Congress candidate Kunvarji Bavaliya is named in a case of cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property, while the Congress candidate from Valsad Kishan Patel is allegedly involved in damaging public property and breaching the Forest Act.

AAP’s candidate from Amreli, Nathalal Sukhadiya has been booked in a case of defamation which is pending before the high court.