Young Turks ready to jump into fray

He lost his maiden political battle from Rajkot I constituency in the 2007 Assembly elections. Jayesh is seen as a strong contender for Congress ticket for Jetpur seat. Represented for decades by the Korats — first by road and building minister in the Keshubhai Patel government Savji Korat and after his death,by his wife Jasuben — for Jetpur,the Congress has got some chances after it was included in the Porbandar Lok Sabha constituency from the Rajkot seat in 2009. Both Korat and Radadiya are Leuva Patels,who dominate this seat. Jayesh,had lost to BJP candidate Govind Patel in the last Assembly elections. However,after his father vacated the Dhoraji seat in 2009 to contest LS elections,parts of Dhoraji constituency was merged with Jetpur. He won that seat in the by-election.

Bhavna Bavalia (30)

(Daughter of Rajkot Congress MP Kunvarji Bavalia)

She is a contender for the Koli-dominated Jasdan seat,which was thrice represented by her father before he became a LS member by defeating BJP’s Kiran Bhalodia in 2009. Bhavna,however,lost the by-election to the Jasdan seat,which went to the BJP for the first time.

Faisal Patel (34)

(Son of Sonia Gandhi’s political secretary Ahmed Patel)

He is said to be grooming himself to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Bharuch,which was represented thrice by his father — 1977-79,1980-84 and 1984-89. Holding an MBA degree from a US institute and married to a cousin of Union minister Farooq Abdullah,Faisal was in news in February this year when he addressed a couple of public meetings in the Bharuch parliamentary constituency and it was rumoured that he was preparing to contest the Assembly elections. But his family sources and senior Congress leaders say Faisal is not interested in the Assembly elections and that he is preparing the ground for the next general elections.

Sangramsinh Rathwa (31)

(Son of former MoS for Railways Naransinh Rathwa)

Sangramsinh was recently elected to the board of Baroda Dairy,representing Congress. He now plans to contest Assembly elections from Chhota Udepur.

An MBA,Sangramsinh started his political career as a member of the Chhota Udepur District Youth Congress and then went on to become the general secretary of the Gujarat Pradesh Youth Congress during 2008-09,having won the seat by securing 78,900 votes.

Rathwa has also served as an elected member of the Chhota Udepur Municipal Committee. “My father has been my political inspiration. But I am drawn to politics more because it gives me an opportunity to serve society,” says Rathwa,adding: “I had been involved in social activities from a young age as a member of the National Service Scheme. The experiences at NSS has always been with me.”

Madhukeshwar Desai (25)

(Great grandson of late prime minister Morarji Desai)

“If the party gives me responsibility of polls as a candidate from anywhere in Gujarat,I would definitely go ahead. I am bound to the party and I have to get a lot of experience from senior party leaders,” says Madhukeshwar,who works in a law firm in Mumbai.

About a year ago,Madhukeshwar made his debut in politics by participating in the Janchetna Yatra taken out by BJP veteran L K Advani. For 40 days,the scion of Desai family travelled with Advani learning the ropes of politics. Madhukeshwar has his ancestral home in Valsad town and has been frequenting the panchayat offices of this town,where he has a base. “Except Morarji Desai,nobody in my family has joined politics. I have decided to join politics because I like it and it is my passion. I have already joined BJP,” he says. He has met Chief Minister Narendra Modi a couple of times.

Anar Patel (42)

(Daughter of state revenue minister Anandiben Patel)

She may not resemble her mother who is the number two in the Narendra Modi government,but she has taken her aggressive leadership qualities. Anar,who runs several women rights and women economic empowerment NGOs,is likely to get a BJP ticket from Naranpura,Ghatlodiya or Sabarmati. Anar’s in-laws are leading Gandhians. Anar and her husband also run Manav Sadhna trust at the Sabarmati Ashram. Though she avoids to be seen in public meetings of BJP,she has found wide acceptance among BJP and RSS cadres.

Jay Shah (25)

(Son of former minister of state for home Amit Shah)

In the absence of his father from Gujarat,because of a Supreme Court’s exile order in the alleged fake encounter case of Sohrabudin Sheikh,Jay won over confidence of Shah’s workers in Ahmedabad. When Shah was away,Jay not only managed issues concerning his father’s Assembly constituency of Sarkhej but also party workers. While Shah’s future is still uncertain — now that he has also been chargesheeted in the Tulsiram Prajapati encounter case and might be arrested — Jay is seen as his political heir. BJP sources say that if Shah does not get the ticket,he will ensure a ticket for Jay either from Ghatlodia,Naranpura or any west Ahmedabad constituency. This ensures a close contest between the children of Anandi Patel and Amit Shah,who have known not to be close friends.

Dipa Bhambhaniya (28)

(Daughter of Purshottam Solanki,Gujarat minister of state for fisheries)

Purshottam Solanki,the undisputed top Koli leader of BJP,is now pushing hard for his daughter Dipa Bhambhaniya,a resident of Una in Junagadh district. She is a councillor in the Una municipality and former standing committee chairperson. She is also leading Mahila Morcha leader in the district. Solanki is pushing for Una seat ticket for her. His elder son Divyesh is expected to get a ticket in case his sister does not get it. Divyesh is likely to contest from Talaja in Bhavanagar or Lathi in Amreli.

Sameer Vyas (38)

(Son of Jaynarayan Vyas,state minister for health and tourism)

His message on http://www.siddhpur.com,a website on the constituency his father represents,says,“For the last decade,especially the last five years,my interaction with Siddhpur has become more intense as I decided to share some burden of my father…”

Under his father’s guidance,he is preparing to join the fray from Siddhpur. However,right now,this seems like a Herculean task given that his father had won by a narrow margin. He heads the Agriculture Produce Market Committee of Siddhpur and is also active in the Siddhpur Municipality. Chances are that his father might not contest this time,handing over the reins to his son.

Bharat Patel (47)

(Son of former chief minister Keshubhai Patel )

He is the only of the five children of Keshubhai Patel who took to politics. Having joined the Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) launched by his father,he sees the opportunity coming his way after being in oblivion in the BJP. Party sources indicate it is a matter of time about junior Patel contesting elections. Before leaving BJP,Bharat had said he had linked his own fate with the political destiny of his father and he would be on his side in all circumstances. Right now,the party is building its organisational network and is yet to decide on who will be its candidates.

Deepak Rana (40)

(Son of former union textile minister Kashiram Rana)

He is the eldest of six children of the six-time MP from Surat who passed away in August,weeks after the launch of Keshubhai’s GPP. Still recovering from the shock of his father’s death,the junior Rana,who runs a chemical trading business in Surat,has decided to continue his father’s dream to make GPP more stronger. Deepak is a science and law graduate from Surat,and had taken over his father’s business.

Sources close to the Rana family feel that Deepak takes a lot after his father,which is what won over the Surtis across communities. Although GPP has decided to give a ticket to Deepak in the coming polls from Surat,Surat city BJP leaders are still trying hard to convince him to join the ruling party. He has maintained a stoic silence on this proposal.