The Congress on Monday announced 12 obvious candidates for Lok Sabha elections in Gujarat, including Union Ministers Shankersinh Vaghela, Dinsha Patel, and Naran Bhai Rathwa.

Shankarsinh Vaghela:Panchmahal

Union Minister of Textiles Shankarsinh Vaghela will contest from the newly constituted Panchmahal constituency. Shankarsinh had contested from former Kapadwanj constituency in 2004 elections. Apart from famous Godhra town, the Panchamahal constituency includes Thasara, Balashinor, Lunavada, Shehra, Morva-Hadak and Kalol assembly areas. In 2004, BJP’s Bhupendrasinh Solanki had won Godhra Loksabha seat(now Panchamahal).

Dinsha Patel:Kheda

Union Minister of State for Petroleum Dinsha Patel will enter into fray from Kheda. Apart from Dinsha’s home town Nadiad, other assembly areas falling under Kheda Lok Sabha constituency are Daskroi, Dholka, Matar, Mehmdavad, Mahudha and Kapadvanj.

In 2004 elections, Vadodara’s royal family queen BJP candidate Shubhangini Devi Gaikwad was defeated by Dinsha in a tough fight with margin of 56749 votes. Dinsha later lost to Narendra Modi from Maninagar assembly segment(Ahmedabad) in 2007.

It was in the 1996 polls that Dinsha Patel had wrested the seat from the BJP trouncing K D Jeswani and has held on to the seat subsequently. Though he had to face defeat at the hands of his bete noire Pankaj Desai in the assembly elections, he had defeated BJP candidate Prabhatsinh Chauhan in 1999 with a margin of 33,717 votes.

Naran Rathwa:Chhota Udepur

Union Minister of State for Railways Naran Bhai Rathwa will be contesting from Chota Udepur constituency. Naranbhai had won this seat in 2004 elections defeating BJP’s then sitting MP Ramsinh Rathwa. Chhota Udepur was always considered precarious for the Congress but in 1999, Naranbhai Rathwa had lost the seat to BJP’s Ramsinh Rathwa by 1,200 votes. Naranbhai came back to parliament after five years through 2004 election to become not only MP but a minister.

Bharat Solanki:Anand

Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee’s former President Bharatbhai Solanki will contest from his home constituency Anand. Bharatsinh had won last Lok Sabha election from Anand in 2004 elections by margin of 61085 votes after resigning from Borsad assembly seat. Anand seat is historically considered as one of the safest seats for Congress but in 1999 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s Dipak Patel defeated Congress. Dipak Patel then was arrested in the centre of Charotar Co-operative Bank scam because of which the BJP dropped him to select another candidate in 2004 elections. Bharatsinh Solanki had resigned from the Gujarat Congress President post after Congress party’s defeat in Gujarat assembly elections 2007.

Satyajit Gaekwad:Vadodara

Former Indian Youth Congress President Satyajit Gaekwad has been given the ticket from Vadodara. Gaekwad was defeated on this seat in 2004 Lok Sabha election by BJP’s Jayaben Thakkar with a margin of 6603 votes. Satyajit Gaekwad had won the seat in 1996 by a margin of just 17 votes. A re-counting of the votes was taken up to establish the slender victory margin for the Congress candidate. Interestingly, Gaekwad became a Member of Parliament directly after being elected as municipal councilor.

The Vadodara parliamentary constituency seat has remained with the Bharatiya Janata Party since 1998, when Jayaben Thakkar defeated Gaekwad. In 1999 parliamentary elections, Jayaben Thakkar had defeated Urmilaben Patel, wife of former Gujarat chief minister Chimanbhai Patel.

Valjibhai Danicha:Kutch

For Kutch seat, which after delimitation has been converted into reserved for Schedule Cast candidates, the Congress has fielded local leader Valji Danicha. Valji Danicha is ex-mla from Kutch’s Mundra town. Valjibhai was elected to state assembly from Mundra in year 1985. He replaces Congress’s Shailendrasinh Jadeja, who lost to BJP’s by 28990 votes in 2004 Lok Sabha election. Adipur based 54 year old contractor Valjibhai is M.A.L.L.B. He is national president of All India Major Ports S.C/S.T employees federation, Chennai. He was chairman of Gandhidham Development Auothority from 1989 to 1991. He was a director of Gujarat rural bank.

Madhusudan Mistry:Sabarkantha

Two time MP and vocal Shankarsinh Vaghela loyalist Madhusudhan Mistry, chief whip of Congress, will be contesting from Sabarkantha constituency. Mistry has been winning tribal-dominated Sabarkantha seat since 1999. Only worry for him is Danta, an area which gave him lead of 30,000 votes is now out of his constituency after new delimitation. Mistry won last election with margin of 39928 votes.

Jivabhai Patel:Mehsana

Jivabhai Ambalal Patel a rich man from Surat will contest from Mehsana on Congress ticket again. Jivabhai had defeated his BJP rival Nitin Patel(who is no MLA and minister in government of Gujarat)in last Lok Sabha elections by 14511 votes margin. With areas like Kalol, which gave him good lead, now merged with Gandhinagar, Jivabhai will have to work hard to ensure his second success.

Prabha Taviyad:Dahod

Prabha Taviyad who was defeated by her rival BJP candidate Babubhai Katara by narrow margin of just 361 votes in Dahod(ST) last elections will be contesting from the same constituency again in this election. She stands good chance to win as Randhikpur assembly area which gave the BJP a lead of 12,000 odd votes in last Lok Sabha elections is now out of the Dahod constituency after delimitation.

Vitthal Radadiya:Porbandar

Rajkot district’s strong Congress MLA from Dhoraji, Vittal Radadia will contest from Porbander seat. Radadiya lost Porbandar to BJP’s Haribhai Patel b a narrow margin in parliamentary election in 2004. A leuva Pate, he is likely to play the caste card. Post-delimitation Porbandar has more Leuvas than Kadva Patels now.

Tushar Chaudhary:Bardoli

Former Gujarat Chief Minister Amarsinh Chaudhary’s son Tushar Choudhary will contest from Bardoli (ST). He is contesting his second Lok Sabha election this time. He won with a handsome margin of 173382 votes in 2004 Lok Sabha elections from Mandvi, the constituency which got eliminated in delimitation.

Kishanbhai V Patel:Valsad

He was a first-timer candidate in 2004 Lok Sabha election but he defeated BJP’s three-time sitting MP Manibhai Chaudhary by 44486 votes margin. He will be contesting from Valsad again this time.

The Congress had won 12 of the 26 parliamentary seats from Gujarat during the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.

Quick look at this development

-Congress has declared 12 candidates list out of total 26 seats in Gujarat.

-Three candidates Satyajit Gaekwad, Prabha Taviyad and Vitthal Radadiya had lost last Lok Sabha election.

-Prabhaben Taviyad was defeated by just 361 votes by then BJP MP Babubhai Katara who is now in Congress. Vitthalbhai was defeated by 5703 votes and Satyajit by 6603 votes.

-Single new face in this list is Valjibhai Danicha from Kutch.

-Eight are sitting MPs: Shankarsinh Vaghela, Dinsha Patel, Naran Rathwa, Bharatbhai Solanki, Jivabhai Patel, Tushar Chaudhary, Kishanbhai Patel and Madhusudan Mistry.

-Shankarsinh Vaghela contested 2004 Lok Sabha election from Kapadwanj constituency. After new delimitation in effect, Kapadwanj constituency doesn’t exist now anymore, so Shankarsinh has chosen Panchamahal constituency(former Godhra constituency from where Shankarsinh had won election on BJP ticket way back before years). Like wise Tushar Chaudhary will be contesting from Bardoli constituency because his old constituency Mandvi doesn’t exist after new delimitation.

-The Congress has not declared four sitting MPs’ name in it’s first list. These four MPs are from Jamnagar, Junagadh, Amreli and Banaskantha constituencies. It is believed that the candidates would be changed in these constituencies.