Gandhinagar: There has been a major setback to Congress candidate Ahmed Patel on eve of Rajya Sabha polling in Gujarat tomorrow. Sharad Pawar led Nationalist Congress Party(NCP) has issued a whip asking its two MLAs in Gujarat Assembly Jayant Patel(Boski) and Kandhal Jadeja to vote for BJP candidate Balwantsinh Rajput. One of two MLAs Kandhal Jadeja said that he recieved phone call from high command today evening asking him to cast vote in favor of BJP candidate Balwantsinh Rajput. Kandhal said so far he was asked to vote only for Balwantsinh and was not told about other candidates. Kandhal said his party leader Praful Patel asked him over a phone call to give byte to TV media and announce that NCP would vote for BJP candidate Balwantsinh Rajput.

– Both NCP MLAs Jayant Patel ‘Boski’ and Kandhal Jadeja had attended Shankersinh Vaghela’s birthday function which had irked Congress party. Chemistry between Vaghela and two NCP MLAs was itself speaking a lot.

– NCP MLA Jayant Patel accompanied Ahmed Patel when Patel went to file his nomination for Rajya Sabha polls.

– Later when asked by media persons, whom NCP MLAs shall vote for, Jayant Patel said they shall follow party’s decision.

– Praful Patel was in Anand in Central Gujarat yesterday. He told media persons that party would take its decision on stand regarding Rajya Sabha polls in Gujarat after deliberation among leadership. Patel criticized Congress for ‘betrayal’ with NCP in 2012 Gujarat assembly polls. He said NCP will contest Gujarat polls in 2017 as third force.

– Today morning, NCP MLA Jayant Patel told media persons that meeting was on in Delhi between Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel and Tariq Anwar regarding party’s stand in Rajya Sabha polls tomorrow. Patel also said that two NCP MLAs in Gujarat will take decision regarding their vote as per directive from party leadership.

– Earlier today NCP leader Tariq Anwar told media persons that NCP would back Congress. Anwar was in favor of Ahmed Patel.

– Ahmed Patel later in the afternoon told media persons that he had received message that NCP had announced its support to his candidature. Ahmed Patel also said that NCP would issue whip accordingly.

– However there was no official announcement regarding NCP’s stand.

– Later in the evening Praful Patel called party MLA Kandhal Jadeja over phone and asked him to give byte to TV media that NCP had decided to vote for BJP candidate.

#WATCH: #Gujarat NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja says "Party has asked us to vote for BJP's Balvantsinh Rajput in tomorrow's RS polls". pic.twitter.com/eDnfqaCh8E

— ANI (@ANI_news) August 7, 2017

DeshGujarat