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Has Congress done a backflip on Patel reservation issue in Gujarat?

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Sahil Joshi
Sahil JoshiNov 01, 2017 | 15:00

Has Congress done a backflip on Patel reservation issue in Gujarat?

If Patidar agitation leader Hardik Patel decides to support the Congress, it will turn a new page in the history of Gujarat politics. It will also mark a "generation shift" from former Congress chief minister Madhavsinh Solanki;s politics to his son and incumbent Gujarat Congress state chief Bharatsinh Solanki's. 

After all, it was the senior Solanki's decision to keep the Patels away from reservation which made them go to the BJP in the first place. Now, Bharatsinh Solanki is trying to woo the Patels to the Congress camp by, in all likelihood, promising reservations that they have been demanding. 

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The party's "reservations" against quota for Patels, which had changed the political scenario of Gujarat, now seem like a distant history. 

1985 saw historic elections in Gujarat Assembly. The Congress under the leadership of Madhavsinh Solanki decided to implement the recommendations of the Bakshi Commission and introduced reservations for socially and economically backward classes (SEBC). This decision introduced around 10 per cent reservations for SEBC (what we now call OBC) in which the Khashtriyas were also included. But the Patels, which comprised around 15 per cent of the population at the time were kept out of it.

This social caste engineering worked for the Congress and it managed a record victory in the Assembly polls getting 149 out of 182 seats that year - a record that even Narendra Modi has not been able to break yet. May be that's why BJP president Amit Shah has set a target of Mission 150 for party workers for coming Assembly elections. 

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Madhavsinh Solanki, former Gujarat chief minister who is also knwon as the artchitect of KHAM.

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Bharatsinh Solanki, Gujarat Congress chief.

Going back to the social engineering, Madhavsinh Solanki's move gave him a handsome victory with a new caste and social arithmetic that was born - KHAM  (Kshatriya, Harijan, Adivasi and Muslim) which became a stronghold for Congress henceforth.

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But it took the Patels away from the Congress and gave rise to a massive agitation against Madhavsinh Solanki's government in the 1980s , which later turned into a full-fledged communal riot. Despite having a comfortable majority, Solanki couldn't rule the state since his administration had become absolutely powerless on the streets.

Finally, within four months of taking oath as the chief minister, Solanki resigned and was replaced by Amarsinh Chaudhary. But the damage was already done. The Congress lost its stronghold in north Gujarat where Patel votes mattered and the community gathered under the Hindutva umbrella provided by the BJP.

In later years, Patels became a solid support base for the BJP which resulted in the loss of power in Gujarat for the Congress -  a state it couldn't reclaim since 1989.  

However, the socio-political scenario has changed over the years. The SEBC (OBC) list which initially comprised 81 communities have over the years increased to 146, but the Patels are still out of it. The proportion of reserved seats for this category has reached to 27 per cent and due to a Supreme Court cap on reservation at 50 per cent since 1992 , quota in Gujarat is almost full - 27 per cent for OBC, 7.5 per cent for Scheduled Caste and 15 per cent for Scheduled Tribe - a total of 49.5 per cent.

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In May this year, the Gujarat government announced a 10 per cent quota for economically backward classes in the state. The new category of proposed beneficiaries was seemingly aimed at pacifying the Patidars who have renewed their agitation since 2015 for inclusion as OBCs - something that has giving jitters to the BJP in Gujarat.

The Gujarat High Court in September quashed the ordinance promulgated by the state government to provide 10 per cent quota for the economically backward among upper castes in education and admission.

This is not the first time Patels are revolting against the BJP in the state. During the 2013 Assembly elections, Patel strongman and BJP's very own Keshubhai Patel had contested against the party under the banner of Gujarat Parivartan Party, but due to his failing health and loss of conviction over the years he couldn't manage to stop the Modi juggernaut from winning the assembly polls for a third consecutive time.

But this time around, the BJP is facing a stiff challenge from Hardik Patel. The state seems to be witnessing a major political churn. The Congress, which was the reason why the Patels started their quota agitation in the first place, is wooing them back with the promise of reservation.

What could be more ironic! 

Last updated: November 02, 2017 | 12:33
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