Mar 20, 2012,
The selection of Mansukh Mandavia and Shankar Vegad -the two new names in the BJP's list for Rajya Sabha elections later this month - is not as unexpected as it appears.
Sources in the party say that the two leaders have been chosen mainly to win over Kadva Patel and Koli voters who have been alienated from the party for some time.
More importantly, both leaders have the approval of chief minister Narendra Modi who has played a decisive role in selection of candidates from Gujarat, the sources added. The third nominee is leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley who was elected to the Rajya Sabha from the state.
Mandavia belongs to the Kadva Patel community and, according to sources, has the support of BJP workers in his region. Kadva Patels are an important community in Saurashtra where the party did not fare well in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. Mandavia's selection for Rajya Sabha is expected to fetch the party his community's support.
The Kadva Patel leader is believed to have come to Modi's attention because of the impressive work done by him for the party's Sangathan Parva (organization festival). The Parva was aimed at strengthening the BJP as an organization and Mandavia was the convenor of the whole exercise.
Similar considerations seem to have influenced the selection of Shankar Vegad. In the last Lok Sabha elections, the party had lost support among Koli voters of Surendranagar. Hence, Vegad has been chosen for the Rajya Sabha as he has a strong support base among the Koli voters of Surendranagar, sources said.
The BJP candidate was defeated by Soma Patel of the Congress in the 2009 parliamentary elections from Surendranagar.
Vegad is the vice-president of Surendranagar city BJP and has been a member of the municipality for 20 years.
He has strong support among party workers in the area and knows the mindset of local voters, the sources said.
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