Ahmedabad, 6 September 2012

Late union minister Kashiram Rana’s shraddhanjali sabha was held today in Ahmedabad’s Town hall. The sabha was organized by Keshubhai Patel led Gujarat Parivartan Party, but it was also attended by large number of BJP workers and some BJP leaders close to Modi including the president of Ahmedabad city unit of BJP Rakesh Shah and Ahmedabad Mayor Asit Vora. BJP leaders close to Modi sitting with Keshubhai, Suresh Mehta and Gordhan Zadafia was a rare scene.

Shri Kashiram Rana left the BJP only couple of months back. He otherwise had spent his entire political career in Jan Sangh and BJP. When Rana became MLA from Surat in 1975, Jan Sangh had only 18 MLA including Keshubhai and Suresh Mehta. Jan Sangh was so tiny organization in that era that it could find only 40 candidates to contest the 181-member assembly polls. Kashiram Rana later became Mayor of Surat city, MP, Gujarat BJP President for two times and only Gujarati Cabinet minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in centre.