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Journalism of Courage
If the Congress is confident about retaining Dhoraji, the only seat it can hope to win in the BJP stronghold of Rajkot district, it8217;s thanks to its sitting MLA Vithal Radadiya. Radadiya faces 16 criminal cases for atrocity, dacoity, power theft, assaulting and issuing life threats to public servants and under the Arms Act. But none of these will make the Congress desert him.
Since 1990, he has changed three parties, but that hasn8217;t stopped him from winning three elections in a row. When he was in the BJP, he supported Union Textile Minister Shakarsinh Vaghela to topple the Keshubhai Patel government and joined the All India Rashtriya Janata Party, which later merged with the Congress.
Radadiya, chairman of the Rajkot District Co-operative bank and on the boards of trustees in several Patel hostels and schools in Dhoraji, has managed to get two Congress tickets for his family. While Dhoraji has been reserved for him, his son Jayesh is contesting from Rajkot-I. In 2002, the Congress fielded his wife Chetna from Kalawad constituency.
He claims that most of the cases against him were registered while he was fighting for the rights of the public. Radadiya has twice been accused of stealing power8212; to the tune of Rs 1.81 lakh and Rs 1.67 lakh.
Crime File
16 criminal cases for atrocity, dacoity, power theft and assault
Assets
Cash: 2.5 lakh
Deposits and investments: Rs 87,212 wife8217;s: Rs 5,15,358
Land: Rs 4.7 lakh wife: Rs 4.64 lakh
