Ahmedabad: Ahead of the final phase of Gujarat polls, both Congress and BJP failed to capitalise on their respective mascots Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Both parties used the names of these two historic leaders only to score brownie points over each other.
The father of the nation and the original iron man of India - Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, both Gujarati, both iconic Indians and both of whom the Congress and the BJP have used to play on Gujarati asmita - the pride of being Gujarati for electoral gains.
The Congress put the two at an equal footing, speeches and slogans giving them equal importance.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi said, “Gujarat has given us Gandhi, who showed the way of truth and it also gave us Sardar Patel, who united the country."
The BJP has had a natural affiliation for Sardar Patel but Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi also embraced the Congress' mascot.
"The Mahatma and Sardar worked together for independence. You people take the name of Gandhi, but you are not willing to acknowledge his importance," Modi said.
Attacking the Central Government for not naming Mahatma's birthplace Porbandar on the list of celebrations to mark 150 years of the 1857. Uprising, regardless that it took place 12 years before Gandhi was even born.
Gujarat witnessed an election campaign where personal attacks overshadowed issues. Ironically, Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel did feature in the campaign, but their values and ideals did not.
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