Latest news with #GopalItalia
Indian Express
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Gopal Italia takes oath as MLA, says state govt should step down
Gujarat Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and MLA from Visavadar constituency, Gopal Italia, on Wednesday demanded resignation of all Gujarat government officials and said that the state would see an end to incidents of bridge collapse, paper leak, hooch tragedies and harassment of women by goons when they quit. Italia said this while interacting with mediapersons after taking oath as an MLA. BJP MLA from Kadi constituency, Rajendra Chavda, also took oath as an MLA Wednesday. Gujarat Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary administered the oath to both the leaders. Chavda and Italia have recently been elected to Gujarat Assembly. Replying to a question on a recent episode involving him and BJP MLA from Morbi, Kanti Amrutiya, in which the latter challenged him, asking him to resign as the Visavadar MLA, Italia said, 'Everyday, several bridges collapse and still nobody is punished, no action is taken. The government should resign. Everyday liquor is being (illegally) sold and many people die in hooch tragedies and still no action is taken. The entire government should tender resignation. A number of (recruitment examination) papers get leaked. They talk about taking strict action, but no action is taken. The government should resign. Drug mafias have become reckless and youths in big cities fall into their traps, and still no firm or solid action is taken. The entire government should resign.' 'The bridges will not stop collapsing if Gopal Italia resigns. Sale of drugs will not stop or paper leaks will not stop if Gopal Italia resigns. But if the entire (BJP) government resigns… then papers will not get leaked, bridges will not collapse, goons will stop harassing women,' he added. Italia further said, 'The entire government should tender resignation to make the people of Gujarat happy, to free them from slavery. What difference will Gopal Italia's resignation make?' Italia also remembered Dr B R Ambedkar, the maker of Indian Constitution, and former Chief Minister late Keshubhai Patel during his swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday. He also appealed to the people of Gujarat to wake up and stand up against the BJP government in the state. Italia was accompanied by AAP leaders and workers, including state party president Isudan Gadhvi. Chavda was accompanied by senior BJP leaders, including Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Minister Rushikesh Patel, state BJP's Organising Secretary Ratnakar and former deputy CM Nitin Patel.
New Indian Express
13-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Patel power play as AAP challenges BJP Gujarat citadel
AHMEDABAD: The political battleground in Gujarat is witnessing a renewed churn around the influential Patidar community, with multiple players vying for dominance in this electoral bloc. While the BJP continues to command a grip on the Patel vote bank, bolstered by its top leadership comprising influential Patidar figures, emerging challenges from the AAP and internal lobbying within the Congress are beginning to shift the political discourse. The AAP, under the leadership of Gopal Italia, has stepped up efforts to erode the BJP's dominance in the Patidar belt. Though the Congress has failed to make a lasting dent in the BJP's support among Patels, it is currently witnessing a power tussle within its own state unit. While its Patidar leaders are pushing for a Patel to be appointed as the new state Congress president, a counter-lobby led by the OBC bloc is pressing for an OBC leader to take charge. A political confrontation has turned Morbi into the epicentre of Gujarat's electoral drama. The spark came when BJP MLA Kanti Amrutiya, during a public event, challenged AAP's Gopal Italia to contest elections from his Morbi seat. Amrutiya vowed to resign from the assembly on Monday and even pledged Rs 2 crore to Italia if he managed to win. 'If he has the support of the Patidar community, let him prove it in Morbi,' Amrutiya asserted. Vankaner BJP MLA Jitu Somani threw his weight behind Amrutiya's challenge. 'If Italia wins from Morbi, I will resign from my seat in Vankaner. Let him put in his papers on Monday and enter the ring,' Somani declared. Gopal Italia accepted the challenge in a video response. 'If the BJP MLAs truly resign, I'm ready to contest. One must not go back on their word. I accept this challenge,' Italia expressed.
The Hindu
06-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
The fight for the Opposition space in Gujarat
AAP leader Gopal Italia recently won the Visavadar Assembly seat in Gujarat. This may look like a one-off feat, but it adds to growing evidence that the AAP is eating into the Congress's vote share in the State. Mr. Italia, 35, a former police constable who had once hurled a shoe at the then Minister of State for Home, defeated the BJP's Kirit Patel by 17,554 votes. The Congress came third. The AAP had won from here in the Assembly elections in 2022, but its MLA resigned in December 2023 and defected to the BJP, which necessitated the by-election. The AAP now has five legislators in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly. The Congress has 12 (down from 17 after defections and one candidate's Lok Sabha win). There is critical sub-text here to indicate how the AAP is emerging as an alternative to the Congress. Also Read | Kejriwal hails bypoll wins as 'semi-final to 2027'; says Gujarat fight between AAP, BJP With a vote share of 13% in 2022, the AAP had finished as the first runner-up in 44 seats where the Congress candidates forfeited their election deposits. In 33 seats, the combined strength of the two Opposition parties was higher than that of the BJP winners. These were seats besides the 17 won by the Congress and five won by the AAP. The AAP took the electoral plunge in Gujarat in 2017. Though it did not secure a single seat, it dug its heels in. Subsequently, the party's only strategy was to be visible on the ground and be seen helping people get work done from the local government offices. AAP activists unearthed as many as 170 local scams of varying values in the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC). Later, they exposed a State-level multi-crore government exam paper leak racket, which forced the government to cancel the test. Against this, the Congress has generally been absent and has not posed any challenge to the government. It was no surprise then that the AAP emerged as the Opposition party in the SMC elections in 2020. It secured 27 seats against 93 of the BJP in the 120-member SMC; the Congress did not win any. In all, the AAP bagged 69 seats in elections to various local municipal bodies that year, which was quite an accomplishment as this was an alien electoral land for the party. Also Read | AAP severs ties with Congress, to contest Gujarat elections independently The Congress put up its best performance in decades in the 2017 elections but could not build on it for the future. Following a no-bolds-barred campaign by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who then became the president of the party, the Congress won 77 seats and the BJP 99. Mr. Gandhi spent at least three days in all the four regions of Gujarat. His campaign was unprecedented because it was the first time that anyone from the Gandhi family had spent so many days here. Mr. Gandhi raised several burning issues — unemployment, demonetisation, the pangs of the newly introduced Goods and Services Tax, crony capitalism, and the deteriorating state of agriculture. The Congress had the support of young turks such as Hardik Patel (Patidar), Alpesh Thakore (Other Backward Classes member) and Jignesh Mevani (a Dalit). It was an unprecedented situation as members of all the three castes came together on one platform. But the Congress could not retain them with the due importance they deserved and so, Mr. Patel and Mr. Thakore quit the party to join the BJP; they are now MLAs. Many leaders have since deserted the Congress, but the party does not seem to have tried hard to stop anyone nor applied any corrective measures to halt this trend. Mr. Gandhi visited Gujarat after the 2024 general elections and announced in a spirited vein that his party would form the government in 2027. In another visit, he mocked his own party leaders saying, 'Congress has two types of horses: those used in weddings and those in battles. But we assign the wrong duties to them.' He added that there were Trojan horses in his party who were hand in glove with the BJP and asserted that they would be purged. He promised to infuse fresh young blood in the party's Gujarat leadership. No such thing has happened yet. In fact, Gujarat Congress president Shaktisinh Gohil resigned after the by-election results. Also Read | Assembly bypolls: Gujarat Congress chief Shaktisinh Gohil resigns after party loses both seats A common argument is that a third front has not succeeded in Gujarat, but the Congress seldom notices that this was only because there was always a proper Opposition party in place all these decades. All the major third fronts have been splinters of the Congress and the BJP and were seen as opportunistic groupings. As against this, the AAP is an independent political dispensation looking to spread its tentacles and has announced that it will contest the next Assembly polls on its own. Darshan Desai is Professor-in-Practice, Journalism and Mass Communication, Navrachana University, Vadodara, and a senior Gujarat-based journalist
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
'Ye Congress-BJP ka rishta kya kehlata hai...': Arvind Kejriwal alleges secret nexus between political parties in Gujarat
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP ) and Congress during a party membership drive in Ahmedabad, questioning the relationship between the two parties. He alleged that the two major national parties are secretly working in tandem calling them "premi-premika." "What is the relationship between Congress and the BJP? Is it a brother-sister relationship or a husband-wife relationship? It is a lovers' relationship. They meet secretly due to the fear of society. Society does not accept their marriage," ANI quoted him as saying. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Treatment That Might Help You Against Knee Pain Knee pain | search ads Find Now Undo He accused both parties of being complicit in corruption and blamed their alleged collusion for decades of misgovernance. He further added, "Stay away from them, they are very dangerous. Their rule lasted for 30 years because Congress was in their pocket. 70 per cent of contracts go to this party, 20 per cent of contracts go to that party. Both parties have opened their own companies. These people don't go to jail... Congress works for the BJP. Only Aam Aadmi Party serves the country." Live Events He positioned AAP as the genuine alternative in Indian politics, saying that the only AAP "serves the country." On Tuesday, while speaking to the media, Kejriwal hailed the party's victory in Gujarat's Visavadar by-election , saying it reflects the mood of Gujarat for a change. Kejriwal said, "In the Visavadar by-election, the overwhelming majority with which Aam Aadmi Party secured victory and defeated BJP shows the mood of Gujarat, that people are fed up with BJP, they are angry, and want change. Gujarat wants a change," Kejriwal said. The AAP Chief said that the victory was a response to the people's desire for an alternative to the BJP, which has ruled Gujarat for 30 years. "BJP ruled here for 30 years because there was no alternative; Congress was sitting in BJP's lap... Now people have found a good, honest, patriotic alternative. They have decided to bring the Aam Aadmi Party to power," Kejriwal claimed. On June 24, after winning the Visavadar Assembly bye-election by 17,554 votes, AAP leader Gopal Italia credited victory to public support, called it a historic result against the BJP's efforts, and highlighted growing faith in AAP leadership in Gujarat. The Visavadar seat fell vacant after BhayBhupendrabhai Gandubhai resigned. Visavadar assembly constituency is part of Junagadh district and a segment of Junagadh Lok Sabha constituency. The party had fielded Gopal Italia, a former Gujarat party chief, as its candidate for the Visavadar Assembly bypolls. The AAP party workers celebrated the election results in Gujarat, as Gopal Italia defeated BJP's Kirit Patel by 17,554 votes, garnering 75,942 votes in total.
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Business Standard
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
A lover's relationship: Kejriwal alleges secret nexus between Cong and BJP
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal launched a scathing attack on both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress during a party membership drive in Ahmedabad, alleging that the two major national parties are secretly working in tandem. Addressing the supporters, Kejriwal drew a provocative analogy, questioning the relationship between the two parties in Gujarat. He said, "What is the relationship between Congress and the BJP? Is it a brother-sister relationship or a husband-wife relationship? It is a lovers' relationship. They meet secretly due to the fear of society. Society does not accept their marriage." He accused both parties of being complicit in corruption and blamed their alleged collusion for decades of misgovernance. He said, "Stay away from them, they are very dangerous. Their rule lasted for 30 years because Congress was in their pocket. 70 per cent of contracts go to this party, 20 per cent of contracts go to that party. Both parties have opened their own companies. These people don't go to jail... Congress works for the BJP. Only Aam Aadmi Party serves the country." He positioned AAP as the genuine alternative in Indian politics, saying that the only AAP "serves the country." On Tuesday, while speaking to the media, Kejriwal hailed the party's victory in Gujarat's Visavadar by-election, saying it reflects the mood of Gujarat for a change. Kejriwal said, "In the Visavadar by-election, the overwhelming majority with which Aam Aadmi Party secured victory and defeated BJP shows the mood of Gujarat, that people are fed up with BJP, they are angry, and want change. Gujarat wants a change," Kejriwal said. The AAP Chief said that the victory was a response to the people's desire for an alternative to the BJP, which has ruled Gujarat for 30 years. "BJP ruled here for 30 years because there was no alternative; Congress was sitting in BJP's lap... Now people have found a good, honest, patriotic alternative. They have decided to bring the Aam Aadmi Party to power," Kejriwal claimed. On June 24, after winning the Visavadar Assembly bye-election by 17,554 votes, AAP leader Gopal Italia credited victory to public support, called it a historic result against the BJP's efforts, and highlighted growing faith in AAP leadership in Gujarat. The Visavadar seat fell vacant after Bhayani Bhupendrabhai Gandubhai resigned. Visavadar assembly constituency is part of Junagadh district and a segment of Junagadh Lok Sabha constituency. The party had fielded Gopal Italia, a former Gujarat party chief, as its candidate for the Visavadar Assembly bypolls. The AAP party workers celebrated the election results in Gujarat, as Gopal Italia defeated BJP's Kirit Patel by 17,554 votes, garnering 75,942 votes in total.
