The focus on “winnability”, “rewarding grassroot workers with tickets” and the higher OBC quota in the April 26 local bodies elections in Gujarat seemed to have taken priority over all other markers of merit, at least in the case of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation.
For a party like BJP, which has claimed to have as members several professionals and its organisation has dedicated cells for lawyers, doctors, traders, teachers and ‘intellectual citizens’ , which comprises academicians, chartered accounts, engineers and other professionals, 64.47% of the candidates fielded in the VMC elections have not attained higher education.
Of the 76 BJP candidates contesting from 19 wards, 20 are graduates while seven are postgraduates as per their affidavits submitted to the SEC; 11 candidates dropped out of school while six completed Class 10.
The party fielded 11 candidates who completed Class 12 and six diploma holders. Four candidates have certificate courses from Industrial Training Institute (ITI). The BJP candidate from Ward 14 has not submitted any education details.
The Congress, with 74 candidates in the contest following the withdrawal of nominations by candidates in Ward 2 and Ward 11 on Wednesday, has an equal number of ‘educated’ candidates with 64.86% of the aspiring corporators not having pursued graduation degrees.
Of the 74 Congress candidates, 10 are school dropouts while nine candidates have completed Class 10. Two candidates of the party dropped out of courses after completing Class 10.
Story continues below this ad
The Congress fielded 20 candidates who completed Class 12, three holding diplomas, and two with ITI certificates. One candidate never attended school, while one completed education up to Class 11. The party also fielded 14 graduates, 10 postgraduates and two PhD holders.
The BJP, which previously had a sizeable number of doctors, medical professionals, teachers and lawyers as elected representatives in the VMC, has restricted its list to fielding just a handful of professionals: two lawyers, who are dynasts, and one chartered accountant. One candidate in Ward 3 has completed the Primary Teachers Certificate (PTC), a two-year diploma course in Gujarat to qualify as a teacher.
Assets vs education
In many wards, candidates with lower education qualifications have declared more assets than candidates with degrees. In Ward 12, Sameer Vaghela of the BJP – who is already seen as a frontrunner for Mayor if BJP wins, given that the post is reserved for an SC candidate – has declared education qualification up to Class 10 and assets worth Rs 1.7 crore as against Congress candidate Sachin Mayavanshi, who declared a post-graduate degree with assets worth Rs 4.95 lakh.
The Congress has Amar Vaghela – a Ph.D. and former NSUI leader – from Ward 8 as its likely Mayoral candidate, in case the party wins the polls.
Story continues below this ad
In Ward 3, BJP’s Ranvijaysinh Jadeja– educated up to Class 9—declared assets worth Rs 2.5 crore. Jadeja is facing Congress’ Nilesh Patel, a graduate with declared assets of Rs 53,000. Similarly, in Ward 17, BJP’s Hiren Sukhadia, son of former Sayajigunj BJP MLA Jitendra Sukhadia, declared assets of about Rs 1.75 crore while Congress’ Parth Patel– a graduate—declared assets worth Rs 4.83 lakh.
In Ward 16, a contrary picture emerges where the Congress candidate Chandrakant Shrivastava, a veteran, is richer than the BJP candidate. Shrivastava is a Class 12 pass with assets worth approximately Rs 18.2 crore while his opponent from the BJP, Rajivranjan Tripathi– a diploma holder– has shown assets worth approximately Rs 35 lakh.
In Ward 9, Congress’ Meena Vasava, a graduate with assets worth about Rs 2.25 lakh, will take on BJP candidate Surekha Patel, who just completed her term as a corporator in March 2026 and has declared assets worth about Rs 48 lakh. Similarly, in Ward 3, Congress’ Kruti Raval, a post-graduate with assets worth Rs 5 lakh, will take on Kalpana Patel of the BJP, a Class 12 pass, who has declared assets worth Rs about Rs 40 lakh.
What parties say
Jayprakash Soni, BJP’s city chief in Vadodara, tells The Indian Express that the party has taken into consideration the “dedication” of grassroot workers. Soni said, “The party has fielded all kinds of professionals… We may not have doctors this time but there are lawyers and there is a CA. The party has preferred grassroots workers who have worked for over 30 years with dedication. In local body polls, education is not the primary parameter. We have to include everyone…”
Story continues below this ad
Party leaders also say that the implementation of the OBC reservation in the upcoming polls had narrowed down the options for candidates. A senior Congress leader says, “The fact is that local body polls are meant to reward grassroot workers, who do not stand a chance in the Assembly and Parliamentary polls. Having said that, the party had little choice in the local body polls as seat reservations have to be respected. Several of the local seats belong to wards where there are slum settlements and the candidates are locals… Not every strata of society has candidates with similar educational profiles.”
Congress city president Rutvij Joshi says that the party had to pick candidates to balance the composition of the wards based on the reservation. “For instance, we have one candidate Mayaben Basera, who is an old party worker and earns a living by ironing clothes. She belongs to the OBC community and fits as a perfect candidate for the reserved seat in her ward due to her outreach and loyalty (to the party). She has never been to school. However, in local polls, the candidates who connect with the voters at a micro level are picked… We have a high number of post graduates in our list and if the voters pick Congress candidates, there will be a balance…”
The education data of the candidates in the contest for the civic polls has sparked questions about the city’s status as an “education hub”, considering the glorious history of the erstwhile Baroda state under Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III, which, along with Travancore, was among the most literate states in the pre-independence period.
A senior BJPleader says, “It is true that the party decides candidates for the local polls based on parameters other than education… A lot of ground level factors are at play such as the appeasement of party factions, promises made in lieu of support in bigger polls and so on… Education qualification does not matter so much. But it is also true that in modern times, educated leaders can bring a vision and a perspective in governance that is crucial for development. It makes a difference to have an educated Mayor compared to someone who has not received formal education as the ability to navigate complex, policy-driven urban governance issues—such as infrastructure, public health, and financial planning—can become a challenge…”
