Why rivals make way for MLA Gote

The stamp scam may have rocked the nation, but in Dhule, where Gote and his friend Telgi shared public platforms with top politicians from various parties, it is not a poll issue. Not even for the Shiv Sena or the Congress.

‘‘Gote’s relations with Telgi is not a poll issue,’’ says Sena nominee from Dhule, Dr Subhash Bhamre. ‘‘There are other issues which are more important…like civic amenities. Telgi has no importance here,’’ he adds.

Congress candidate Rajwardhan Kadambande agrees. ‘‘We are seeking votes on issues of local development,’’ he says. Refusing to elaborate on Telgi, he launches into a discourse on what ails Dhule.

Since Gote’s arrest, his wife has been elected to the Dhule municipal council and is now its president. ‘‘Isn’t that proof enough that Telgi is not a poll issue,’’ she asks.

Located about 155 km north of Nashik, Dhule is a town with around 4.5 lakh people. Edible oil extraction is the main industry here — the other big industry being a starch manufacturing unit. The main occupation is farming, the major crops being bajra, jowar, onions and groundnut.

Gote, once a correspondent for a Marathi daily, emerged on the scene here a decade ago. He soon acquired the reputation of being a man who could get things done. Politicians with whom he shared platforms included George Fernandes, Nitish Kumar, Manohar Joshi, Gopinath Munde, Narayan Rane and Ram Jethmalani.

A voter, Madhukar Patil, recalls, ‘‘We used to face acute water scarcity in the city. It was Anna (Gote) who improved the water supply system and gave us water and better roads.’’ Gote’s clout could be gauged from the fact that he was the Sena-BJP’s candidate for the Deputy Speaker’s post in the Assembly. With connections that cut across the political divide, it is small wonder then if the Congress and Sena shy away from raising the Telgi issue here.

In fact, Telgi’s name (as a donor of Rs 1 lakh) still stands inscribed on a plaque at the Shivteerth memorial created by the Kisan Trust, which was floated by Telgi and Gote.

Sensing a conspiracy of silence, some citizens like Hiraman Gawli, who runs the Hindu Ekta Andolan, are now trying to turn the Telgi chapter into a poll issue. Gawli is particularly unhappy with the BJP and Shiv Sena for being silent on the issue. ‘‘I told them to give me a few minutes’ time at public meetings, but they refused,’’ he says.