How were the 13 battles for the chair in Gujarat?

(Google translation from Gujarati) On May 1, 1960, the independent Gujarat state came into existence by separating from the bilingual ‘Bombay State’. After that, i.e. from 1962 to 2022, assembly elections were held 14 times in the state of Gujarat. There have been many twists and turns in the political flow of Gujarat in 62 years. With the establishment of Gujarat in 1960, Dr. Jivraj Mehta was appointed the first Chief Minister of Gujarat State. Dr. Jivraj Mehta was a highly skilled doctor, personal physician of the Tata family and Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Vadodara, Dean of KEM (King Edwards Memorial) Hospital in Mumbai, freedom fighter of the ‘Quit India’ movement. He was a member of the Bombay State Legislature from 1946 to 1948. In 1947, he served as Director in the Health Department in the first cabinet of independent India. He was also the Minister of Public Works Department of Mumbai State in 1949 and Finance Department in 1952. Looking at his very weighty ‘biodata’, naturally he was appointed the first Chief Minister of Gujarat.

1962
The first election of independent Gujarat was held in 1962. At that time there were 154 seats in the Gujarat Assembly. The sun of Congress was shining in the country and socialist thinking was in the air. Due to its influence in Gujarat also, the Indian National Congress won a huge majority by winning the maximum 113 seats. Everyone once again unanimously gave Dr. victory from his hometown Amreli. Jivraaj Mehta was elected Chief Minister. C is at number two with 26 seats. Rajagopalachari founded and formed the ‘Swatantra Party’ in Gujarat along with leaders like Bhai Lalbhai Patel and Jashbhai Patel. Jayaprakash Narayan’s ‘Praja Socialist Party’ is at number three with 7 seats.

A total of 519 candidates contested from across the state in this election. This means that there were an average of 3 candidates per constituency. 37 seats had a minimum of two candidates, while a total of 8 seats had six to ten candidates. Vadodara East seat had the highest number of 8 candidates. Out of 519 women, 19 contested and 11 of them were elected.

Interestingly, the total number of voters in Gujarat at that time (as against a population of 2 crore) was not even 95.35 lakh or one crore. Despite being the first election of independent Gujarat, only 57.97% voting took place.

Surprisingly, even though the Congress got a clear majority in the first election of independent Gujarat, it could not complete its term due to internal strife. In just one and a half years, such an efficient and learned Chief Minister Dr. Jivraaj Mehta had to resign on 18 September 1963. Balwantrai Mehta was made the Chief Minister in his place. Then the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru appointed Dr. Jivraaj Mehta as the Indian High Commissioner in London. Two years later, in 1965, the second Indo-Pakistani War broke out. Balwantrai Mehta’s plane, which took off from Kal Karra and Mithapur, was shot down by the Pakistan Air Force, killing him and his wife Saroj Behan. Gujarat once again became without a chief minister and another chief minister left unexpectedly in the very first term. Hitendrabhai Desai, who was a minister in both the previous cabinets, was made the Chief Minister.

1967
Another assembly election was held at the end of the term in 1967. This time the number of assembly seats increased to 168. A total of 613 candidates contested the election, including 14 women. Out of these 14, 8 women were elected MLAs. This time the average number of candidates per constituency increased from three to four. The effect of internal strife was seen and the Congress seats fell to double digits at 93. The Swatantra Party gained 40 seats and their tally increased to 66, but the Congress Party managed to cross the ‘magic figure’ of 85 seats for a two-thirds majority and Hitendra Desai elected from Allapad became the Chief Minister again. This time the number of valid voters was 1.07 crore and the total voter turnout was 63.70%.

1972
In 1969, there was a huge upheaval in the Congress at the national level. In the 1967 elections fought under the leadership of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the Congress performed very poorly. She retained power, but lost 78 seats. In the year 1969, Indira Gandhi had a serious disagreement with the senior leaders of her own party over the selection of the presidential candidate. Indira was expelled from the Congress by the then Congress President S. Nijalingappa for supporting independent candidate V.V. Giri instead of the official presidential candidate of the Congress, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy. As a counter attack, Indira formed her own Congress ‘Congress (R)’ (R = Requisition or Ruling). While senior leaders like K. Kamaraj, Morarji Desai named their Congress ‘Congress (O)’ (O = Organization). In colloquial language, Congress came to be called ‘Indicate’ i.e. Indira Gandhi’s Congress and ‘Syndicate’ i.e. old Congress. Naturally, the effects of this entire incident also fell on Gujarat. In 1971, Hitendra Desai resigned from the post of Chief Minister and President’s rule was imposed in Gujarat.

A year later, the echo of elections was heard again in Gujarat. This time 873 candidates contested for a total of 168 seats of Gujarat Assembly, including 21 women, but only one woman (Congress’s Ayesha Sheikh from Mangalore) could win. This time an average of five candidates contested on each seat and the maximum number of 12 candidates contested on Kutiana seat. This Kutiana seat is worth remembering

The total voting percentage in the election was 58.10%. This election in Gujarat was like Congress versus Congress. There was a contest between Indira Gandhi’s Indicate Congress and Morarji Desai’s Syndicate Congress, but Indira Gandhi’s Congress won a huge majority of 140 seats. Syndicated Congress won only 16 seats. Ghanshyam Ojha, who lost from Dasada in the 1967 election, has won from Dehgam this time. He became the Chief Minister of Gujarat at the behest of Indira Gandhi, but despite such a majority, this government also failed. Within a year and a half, Ghanshyam Ojha had to resign. After winning from Sankheda, Chimanbhai Jivabhai Patel, who was the Minister of Industry and Energy, was appointed in his place, but the Navnirman movement gained momentum and Chimanbhai also had to leave power. President’s rule was again imposed in Gujarat. Meanwhile, Chimanbhai Patel founded ‘Kisan Mazdoor Lok Paksha’ (Kimlop). In the 1972 elections, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh also won 3 seats. Of course, their candidates lost their deposits in 69 out of 100 seats.

1975
In the 1975 elections, the situation was a tangle again and Indira’s Congress was reduced to 75 seats. This time the number of Gujarat assembly seats increased to 181. Therefore, to form the government, it was necessary to touch the magic figure of 92 seats. Congress Original won 56 seats, Bharatiya Jana Sangh won 18 and Chimanbhai’s Kimlop won 12 seats. 848 candidates contested in this election. This time the number of seats where six to ten candidates are contesting has increased to 44. On an average, five candidates were contesting on each seat. The highest number of 11 candidates contested on the Jamalpur seat. Out of 1.40 crore voters, 60.09% voted. Babubhai Jashbhai Patel, MLA from Sabarmati, left the Congress party due to differences during the political emergency declared by Indira Gandhi in 1975. In June 1975, he formed the first non-Congress Janata Morcha government in Gujarat and became its Chief Minister.

1980
This time Gujarat Assembly elections are being fought on 182 seats. A total of 974 candidates contested the elections, out of which 5 women out of 24 were also elected. Congress won a landslide victory on 141 seats and Madhavsinh Solanki, elected from Bhadran, became the Chief Minister. In this election, the maximum number of 11 candidates contested from Dhrangadhra, but the seat of Kutiyana was unique. In this election, only one candidate contested on this seat, Mahant Vijaydasji and naturally he was elected unopposed. This leader of Mehar caste took initiation from Kabirpanti. Not only this, he also fought for the earlier Arzi government formed for the liberation of Junagadh. In this election, the Janata Party won 21 seats and the party which is now BJP won 9 seats.

1985
Five years later, in the 1985 elections, Madhav Singh Solanki created history. He won 149 seats, the highest in the history of Gujarat. 1137 candidates contested in this election and there were an average of 6 candidates per constituency. The maximum number of 16 candidates contested from Himmatnagar seat. Of course, this time only 48.37% of the 1.65 crore voters voted. The number of women MLAs elected was also only five. Ironically, despite such a big victory, Madhav Singh Solanki was forced to resign in just four months, far from completing his term. The reason for this was the intensifying reservation movement and the resulting communal riots. In his place, 44-year-old Amar Singh Chaudhary, elected from Vyara, became the Chief Minister. Of course, four years later in October, 1989 he became the Chief Minister again for only three months, as the term of the Assembly ended in December, 1989.

1990
The 1990 Gujarat Assembly elections followed a pattern of cooks cooking. This time a crowd of candidates thronged. A total of 1889 candidates entered the fray. The average number of candidates per constituency has been 10. There were 87 constituencies where six to ten candidates were contesting, 60 constituencies where 11 to 15 candidates were contesting and 20 seats where more than 15 candidates were contesting! Khedbrahma and Kamaraj had the least number of candidates, three each. Wankaner had the maximum number of candidates at 25! This time 2.48 crore candidates cast 52.20% votes.

The result of this manipulation was that no single party got a majority. Janata Dal got 70 seats and BJP got 67 seats. While Congress was reduced to just 33 seats. Chimanbhai Patel formed the government with BJP. The next Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel, Kambaldas Mehta and Suresh Mehta were ministers in that government.

1995
The 1995 assembly elections officially marked the beginning of the ‘BJP era’ in Gujarat. BJP won 121 seats out of a total of 182 seats. The interesting thing was that in this election, the highest number of candidates were contesting in the history of independent Gujarat. About 2545 candidates participated. The number of candidates per constituency also reached 14. There was not a single seat where less than 4 candidates were contesting! At the same time, the highest number of 37 candidates were trying for votes in Dariyapur seat of Ahmedabad! This time the voters also showed good enthusiasm in voting. Out of 2.90 crore voters, 64.39% voted. However, the picture was disappointing for women candidates. Out of a total of 94 women candidates, only 2 could win. Congress with 45 seats

The party became the opposition in the Gujarat assembly. But within a year, a factor named Shankarsinh Vaghela made his mark. After losing the Lok Sabha from Godhra in August 1996, he left the BJP and broke away from the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal to form his own party.

With the support of Sana, he became the Chief Minister of Gujarat. Despite having an absolute majority (Suresh Mehta was the Chief Minister then), the BJP went into power. However, the Congress withdrew support within a year and Shankarsinh Vaghela also lost his seat and his government fell on 28 October 1997, his rebel colleague Dilip Parikh became the Chief Minister for a short time.

1998
Elections were held again in Gujarat in 1998, just three years later. The people of Gujarat also seem to have failed due to the elections held in such a short time and the fall of a majority government. Because, in the 1998 elections, 1125 candidates contested, half the number of candidates contested as compared to 1995. An average of 6 candidates were fielded per constituency and 16 candidates contested in the highest number of constituencies. 59.30% voting took place in this election. This time also BJP won 117 seats with a loss of four seats and achieved absolute majority. Then Keshubhai Patel became the Chief Minister. Congress got 53 seats. However, Shankarsinh Vaghela did not contest the election this time. His party ‘Rajpa’ won only four seats and in August 1999, Rajpa merged with Congress.

2002
On the morning of 26 January 2001, Gujarat witnessed its deadliest earthquake. Thousands of people lost their lives and there was widespread flooding in various parts of Gujarat including Kutch. Due to poor performance, Keshubhai Patel had to leave the Chief Minister’s chair and Narendra Modi was made the Chief Minister. In February 2002, Godhra riots took place and communal riots broke out in Gujarat. Then assembly elections came in December 2002. Whatever may have been the effect of the riots, in this election fought under the leadership of Narendra Modi, BJP won 127 seats and got absolute majority and Modi became the Chief Minister for the second time. At that time Shankarsinh Vaghela was the state president of Gujarat Congress and Congress won 51 seats. The history of Gujarat is a witness that after coming to power in 2001, Narendra Modi did not lose a single election and did not step down from power.

A total of one thousand candidates contested in this election and an average of five candidates contested per constituency. Asarwa seat had the highest number of 15 candidates. 61.54% voting took place in the election and 12 women were elected.

2007
Initiatives like Vibrant Gujarat Summit, Tata Nano Project have played a big role in taking Gujarat’s development model to the people of the country. On the strength of Modi’s wide appeal and calm and stable government, the people of Gujarat kept making BJP win. The 2007 assembly elections were also unexpected in the same way. This time 1268 candidates contested the elections. The average number of candidates per constituency was 7. The voter turnout was 59.77%. The BJP lost 10 seats from the previous election and won 117 seats. Of course, they retained the government with a two-thirds majority. The Congress fared better and won 59 seats.

2012

Narendra Modi, who was contesting for the chief minister’s post for the fourth consecutive time, was now on his way to becoming a national leader. The Anna movement at the national level and the Congress scandals at the Centre during Babbe’s tenure helped Modi gain popularity at the national level. The Gujarat assembly elections, held in two phases in December, saw the highest voter turnout in the last three decades at 71.32%. A total of 1666 candidates contested and there were 9 candidates in each constituency. There were more than 15 candidates in 11 seats. This time the BJP lost two more seats and secured an absolute majority with 115 seats. It won 61 seats as if both those seats went to the Congress’s kitty. Two years later, Narendra Modi contested and won the prime ministerial election from Varanasi and Vadodara. He resigned from Vadodara and said goodbye to the people of Gujarat. He handed over the post of Chief Minister to his government minister Anandiben Patel.

2017
Anandiben Patel suddenly resigned on Facebook on 6 August 2016, citing the BJP’s age limit of 75 years, while there was a year left for the 2017 elections. Vijay Rupani was made the Chief Minister in her place. The elections that followed were the first elections for the BJP in Gujarat without Narendra Modi. His absence had a direct impact on the election results. Meanwhile, the Patidar reservation movement and anti-incumbency wave also affected the BJP. This time 1828 candidates contested the elections, which is the second largest election in the history of the Gujarat Assembly. 10 candidates per constituency competed for people’s votes. 68.39% of Gujarat’s 4.35 crore voters voted. But the BJP got only 99 seats. This was the worst performance of BJP in the last two and a half decades. At one point, even the magic figure of 92 seemed difficult. But despite successfully crossing it, BJP had to be content with two digit seats. Of course, later BJP increased its number of seats to 111 through other means. On the other hand, Congress performed its best in the last three years, winning 77 seats. (Google translation from Gujarati)