Will Vanzara hurt the BJP?

The Government in Gujarat has been often and widely criticised for its complicity with the bureaucracy. The people8217;s perception of this unholy alliance was first revealed by the findings of the Indian Express-CNN-IBN-Divya Bhaskar-CSDS pre-poll survey, wherein 3,890 people were interviewed at 240 locations in Gujarat.

The issue of fake encounters and the arrest of IPS officer, the former DIG D.G. Vanzara, was taken up as a case in the point. Surprisingly, even in a fairly urban and literate state like Gujarat, only 28 per cent people had heard about it, while 72 per cent hadn8217;t. Region-wise, in rural areas, only 28 per cent, and in urban areas, 37 per cent people knew about it.

Though the overall awareness on the issue was less, 51 per cent college-educated and 37 per cent high school-educated people were aware of it. The poor and lower classes form a smaller proportion of those in the know as compared to the rich and the middle classes. Interestingly, this combination of urban, rich, educated middle classes is the most consistent support group of the BJP in Gujarat.