By Rupang Bhatt, Ahmedabad, 27 June 2012

Few days back, MahaGujarat Janata Party Chief Gordhan Zadafia had loudly announced an agitation in Gujarat seeking appointment of Lokayukta in the state. Zadafia added that the agitation would be similar to Anna Hazare’s Lokpal agitation in Delhi.

While Anna Hazare’s Lokpal agitation attracted thousands of people and hours of media attention, Zadafia’s agitation was joined by less than 100 supporters.

But the core issue this piece wants to address is not Zadafia’s poor support base, but his ‘intentions’. Anna Hazare is not a politician, and he doesn’t organize agitations to capture power, but Zadafia is a politician who wants to win few assembly seats.

Then there’s a proverb: What you are speaks louder than what you say.

Look at the dharna agitation of Zadafia and his party. The electric power for dharna programme was stolen from Torrent power’s nearest distribution box.

It was a visual media that exposed this theft, and showed in detail how a cable attached with power company’s distribution box was illegally supplying power to the stage.

When asked to react on this, Zadafia said, “Our workers could have done that, I have come here just now, if it is so we will pay penalty.”

Even after he was told by the channel correspondent about power theft, he continued to use it till the time the dharna event was over.

Even after he was told by the channel correspondent about power theft, he continued to use it till the time the dharna event was over.

It should be mentioned here that last year when few farmers of Surendranagar district were stealing Narmada canal water through powerful pumps, and the areas of Rajkot, Jamnagar, Bhuj were getting lesser amount of water due to this, the state government had taken strict actions and prevented surendranagar farmers to lift irrigation water from Narmada canal. In response to this, Gordhan Zadafia reached Surendranagar to provoke the farmers against state government. He issued statements in support of the farmers who were stealing water meant for drinking purpose for irrigation.

According to sources Zadafia now wants Keshubhai Patel to sit on one-day fast against the state government in Rajkot in near future.

The proverb again:What you are speaks louder than what you say.

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