For 7th win, Bhatt sticks to governance

For party workers, if Narendra Modi is the ‘‘Sher of Gujarat’’, Ashok Bhatt is undoubtedly the Lion of Khadia. Fighting ...

For party workers, if Narendra Modi is the ‘‘Sher of Gujarat’’, Ashok Bhatt is undoubtedly the Lion of Khadia. Fighting for a re-election for the seventh time — he’s won six consecutive times from Khadia — the former health minister is using his ‘‘member of the Khadia family’’ tag to offset any anti-establishment factor.

Bhatt is not perturbed by the fact that 20,000 of the around 72,000 voters in his constituency are Muslims. ‘‘Khadia is a not a locality. It is a family and we are all part of this extended family,’’ he says.

Accompanied by his party workers, he campaigns from door to door. Elderly Jayantibhai, residing in one of the pols near the Astodia Darwaza, waits eagerly for Bhatt’s arrival. ‘‘I voted for Ashok in the early ’70s,’’ he recollects, adding, ‘‘I feel good that my grandchildren will be voting for him this time.’’

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But the anti-incumbency factor cannot be ignored. ‘‘Over the years, there has been no good option to choose from. At times, we have had to vote for Ashokbhai since the opponent was not even mediocre,’’ remarks a resident. This time, Bhatt is pitted against Jagat Shukal of the Congress.

Godhra continues to be one of the major issues in this Hindu-dominated constituency. But Bhatt makes just a passing reference to terrorism: ‘‘The way the BJP, led by Narendra Modi, has stood up to the menace of terrorism, people are bound to take note of it.’’ He is keen to peg his campaign on more traditional issues: ‘‘The BJP is fighting the elections on a clean governance plank.’’

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