The Congress has gone into denial mode over the Election Commission notice over Sonia Gandhi’s ‘merchant of death’ comment. Sonia Gandhi has replied saying that her speech did not refer to any one individual and was a comment on the political reality in Gujarat. Congress General Secretray Digvijay Singh has replied to the Election Commission notice denying using the word, ‘Hindu terrorist’.

She had made the speech at Navsari in Gujarat during an election rally on December 1. The Election Commission had sent her a notice regarding her speech.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, in her reply to the Election Commission notice, claimed that she was not referring to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi or any individual when she said “merchants of death” but was commenting on the governance in Gujarat.

Polling is on in Gujarat. It is the day that counts for Narendra Modi. Modi, who is literally facing a battle for his political survival, has been crisscrossing the state on a rath, often getting into a war of words with the Prime Minister and the Congress President,

Dissidents in Gujarat’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) breathed fire on Tuesday against Chief Minister Narendra Modi as millions voted in the first phase of the make or break assembly elections.

As voters queued up at polling stations in the regions of Saurashtra, Kutch and south Gujarat amid tight security, both the BJP and the Congress claimed they were confident of winning a majority in the 182-member legislature.

Voting on Tuesday was on for 87 seats, involving 668 candidates.

Now, though the time for talk is over, because the ballot power is being tested today. It is a key region going to polls today. The region of Saurasthra, where due to the rebel factor, the voter turnout so far has been low.

Chief Minister Narendra Modi won the 2002 Gujarat elections almost single-handedly with his rhetorics. But this time BJP spin doctors are trying to give him a larger than life image of a matured leader who aspires to take the state forward with his futuristic dreams.

Modi, known for his oratory, is currently playing the card of anti-terrorism along with slogans of national identity and of course his primary slogans, “I love Gujarat” and “Gujarat Jetega “.

Though Gujarat currently does not have any emotive issue for the elections as the 2002 post-Godhra riots, Modi very well knows that emotional appeals can be translated into votes.

Political analysts say Modi’s campaign style depends on the constituency which he is visiting. While being in areas where the BJP is facing dissidents, Modi trumps up the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter issue in his rhetoric style.

Sonia Gandhi, this time has taken a lead at attacking Modi , calling him a maut ka saudagar (merchant of death’), for protecting those accused of rioting and murder during the post-Godhra riots.

She directly took on him on the Sohrabudddin encounter issue during her campaign trail, while calling him jhootha and beimaan (liar and dishonest) in another instance.

She in her speech at Jasdan charged the BJP with using names of great Congress leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, but following the path of Godse.

To this, Modi retorted, ”She being a foreigner has insulted leaders of Gujarat by calling them Godse.” He also dared ‘Soniaben’ to hang him to death if he had done any wrong.

”Encounter, encounter, encounter. If she has the guts, she can hang me to death,” he thundered at a rally in South Gujarat.
Modi also justified the killing at another rally in Karchelia village of Surat.” To someone like Sohrabuddin who was wanted by police in four states and kept arms and ammunition, you tell me what should have been done to him,” he asked the crowd, who responded with, ”kill him, kill him”. He showed no qualms about admitting to the encounter in public.

Modi also accused her of double standards for ‘delaying the execution’ of Afzal Guru convicted in the Parliament attack case.

Voting will be held on 11 and 16 December. The results should be declared on 23 December when Mr Modi’s political fate will become clear.

Bharatiya Janata Party expelled to its 15 leaders from the party who are contesting as independent candidates in the Assembly election.  Three of these are former MLAs who have been denied ticket.

The candidates are Ishwarbhai Rout (Mota Ponda), Rajnikant Rajvadi (Navsari), Tersinh Damor (Dohad), Indranath Parmar (Sojitra), Dilipbhai Patel( Anand), Rajeshbhai Pathak( Balasinor), Prahaladbhai Patel (Visnagar), Ishvarbhai Makwana( Jotana), Magansinh Vaghela(Kankrej), Prabhudasbhai Patel( Bhiloda), Rajabhai charia(Talala), Sunil Ojha(Bhavnagar), Dhanraj Kela(Vadhvan), Chunibhai Gohil( Veraval), Jayantibhai Babhania (Mahuva).

Modi’s statement in an election campaign at Mangrol in Gujarat proved that at last he dared to say what he was subsiding all these days. Yes, Gujarat is back again to election now with hot issues which earlier seemed to be issueless.

During the election rally Modi while referring to Sonia who held Modi responsible for the communal disharmony and alleged him to be anti farmer and anti tribal, Modi said, “Sonia Gandhi spoke of terrorism. But she has no right to talk of this. Till today, the perpetrators of Parliament haven’t been sent to the gallows. And, Congress in Gujarat is raising its voice on the Sohrabuddin issue.”

“But, it should explain to the people what should be done to a man who stored illegal arms and ammunition? You tell me, what should have been done to Sohrabuddin?” he asked the crowd.

The crowd replied, “Kill him, kill him.”

“Well, that is it. Do I have to take Sonia Gandhi’s permission to do this? Hang me if I have done anything wrong,” Modi replied in response.

Sohrabuddin issue became highlighted after CBI investigation team submitted a report to the Apex Court alleging that the encounter was fake in which he died.

Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s controversial remarks over the death of Sohrabuddin have pushed senior advocate KTS Tulsi, who defended the state government in the Supreme Court in the fake encounter case, into declaring that he would opt out and return the brief.

Tulsi accused Modi of playing “ducks and drakes” with the rule of law and the apex court by making remarks justifying the extralegal killing.

“Unless the Chief Minister gives a suitable clarification and offers to apologise it is not possible for me to represent Gujarat government as Special Counsel,” Tulsi said.

Tulsi said he found that the affidavit filed by the state government in the Supreme Court had clearly stated that the killing of Sohrabuddin was a cold-blooded murder, stage managed in a fake encounter.

“It had said that the officers who had participated in the encounter had fabricated the evidence. The chargesheet has already been filed in the case and the statement by the CM on the way the suspected terrorist was dealt with is not acceptable to me,” Tulsi said.

“How can the chief minister take stand diametrically opposite to that of what was stated by the state government before the Court. The position of both the CM and the government becomes untenable,” Tulsi added.

Tulsi was reacting to Chief Minster’s justification of Sheikh’s killing in election speeches by saying he deserved such a fate.

Tulsi had emphatically told the Supreme Court that the state would spare no one involved in Sohrabuddin’s extralegal killing, and had persuaded the court not to order a CBI probe.

Compounding the problems for Modi, Sohrabuddin’s brother Rubabuddin, who had forced the state to take action against top police officers including DG Vanzara by filing a petition before the apex court, is in the process of moving the SC to seek Modi’s prosecution for being part of the conspiracy to kill his brother and his sister-in-law, Kauserbi.

The Congress kept up its attack on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, saying he should be tried and convicted for human rights violations, but refrained from focusing on the 2002 riots.

“Modi’s track record on the one issue of human rights has been abysmal. Those who think that we are hesitant to rake it up, please note that we have been repeatedly raking up this issue,” AICC spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told to media.

“The Gujarat polls are not a one-issue election and not a one-person election. Gujarat election is an assessment of the BJP on all fronts, on all issues, on all facets,” According to Singhvi .

He said Modi deserves to be tried and convicted by Indian courts and also by the international courts of justice.

The BJP on Sunday filed a compliant with the Election Commission against Congress president Sonia Gandhi saying her speech at one of the election rallies violated the model code of conduct.

“We have submitted a complaint to the Election Commission against Sonia Gandhi,” According to general secretary of the Gujarat unit of BJP, Jayanti Barot, .

“Sonia Gandhi, through her speech on Saturday at Chikli in Navsari district, had tried to divide people on caste lines and arouse religious sentiment before the elections.

The UPA chairperson had said in Navsari “those ruling Gujarat are “dishonest” and “merchant of death”.
She had also levelled baseless allegations against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi,” According to Barot .

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, filed his nomination for the battle for the state.

Speaking to reporters after filing his papers, Modi took potshots at the media and social activists, saying development was the only agenda this polls.

“The Gujarat elections are unique as no political party or media or NGOs decide the election programme. It’s the people of Gujarat who decide finally and they want progress and development,” said Modi.

For Modi who is contesting for the second time from Maninagar, the stakes are very high.

The Congress has decided to field stalwart Dinsha Patel in Maninagar against Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Patel is Minister of State for Petroleum and MP from Nadiad in central Gujarat.

According to  sources in Congress, Dinsha will file nomination tomorrow morning. By fielding Dinsha Congress is trying to woo Patel voters in the constituency. It may be noted that the BJP has already given tickets to 22 Patels.  Congress is probably trying to make roads into Maninagar constituency which is dominated by Patels.

It may be noted that Dinsha is being projected as the Congress Chief Minister.

Though Patel is being nominated from Maninagar for the first time, he has earlier won five Assembly elections and four Lok Sabha elections from Gujarat.

After the communal riots in the year 2002, Modi had won the 2002 elections from Maninagar constituency.

This year in the second phase of Gujarat elections scheduled to be held on December 16, Modi will be facing Congress candidate Dinsha Patel, who will be banking on the large number of Patel votes in the constituency.