CHAVDA FACES AN UPHILL CHALLENGE

Gujarat Congress, sunk in defeatism after serial losses and desertions, entrusts its future to a young OBC face

- By Jumana Shah

THE CONGRESS IN Gujarat was wont to send wedding horses to compete in the races, and vice versa, Rahul Gandhi famously said in April 2025.

The unkind wag may have quipped in response that it hasn't owned race horses for a while, and those that it did acquire tended to bolt towards saffron stables. That wouldn't have been one bit untrue, and in fact was one of the Grand Old Party's chief headaches. Anyway, Rahul's metaphorical note set the tone for a process of reconstruction-its nth attempt in a state where it has not seen power since the 20th century.

Three months later, the burst of perestroika saw the state party reins going back to Amit Chavda, 49, an OBC leader and five-term MLA who performed the same role with some promise in 2018-21. In many ways, this reversion expresses the logic the party is now seeking to abide by strictly: going for ideological solidity first of all, and seeking to grow like grass, hugging the ground and spreading horizontally, instead of fostering rootless wonders that fly off at first wind.