Five men were arrested in Rajkot for promoting enmity between different communities after they allegedly distributed pamphlets stating the BJP offered the traditional Leuva Patel Lok Sabha seat to Union Minister Parshottam Rupala who belongs to the Kadva Patel sub-caste group of the Patidar community. The Congress has termed the arrests targeted action against the Leuva Patel community.
Four accused who were arrested late at night on Thursday were granted bail by a local court a day later. The fifth accused, who is suspected to be the one who printed the pamphlets, was nabbed on Friday.
The five were arrested based on a complaint filed by Mahesh Pipariya, a factory-owner and the BJP unit president for Ward No 11 of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC).
Pipariya’s complaint states that Raju Dangariya, general secretary of BJP’s Kisan Morcha for RMC Ward No 11, saw the four accused — Ketan Tala, Prakash Vejpara, Vipul Tarpara and Deep Bhanderi — distributing pamphlets that can “promote enmity between Kadva Patels and Leuva Patel factions of the Patidar community” in Rajdeep Society at 1:30 am Wednesday. He alleged that the accused also shared the images of the pamphlets on social media.
Meanwhile, Rupala’s rival and Congress candidate Paresh Dhanani, a Leuva Patidar, alleged that the FIR has been filed with a mala fide interest of diverting people’s attention.
“The BJP has been shocked by the support I got from all communities during my campaign in Morbi taluka… To divert people’s attention, I feel such false complaints are being filed,” Dhanani said.
The five have been booked under IPC sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 114 (abettor present when an offence is committed). They were also booked under Sections 125 and 127A(4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. Section 125 of RPA deals with offence of promoting enmity between classes in connection with election while Section 127A(4) deals with printing of election pamphlets without details of publisher and printer.
A police officer of Rajkot Taluka police station told The Indian Express that the four accused claimed they were merely distributing pamphlets “given to them by someone else”.
“Who got these pamphlets printed and who handed them over to the four men is a matter of investigation,” the officer said.
Incidentally, Shivlal Vekariya and Vallabh Kathiria — both Leuva Patels — had won Rajkot for the BJP in 1989, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2004. However, in 2009, the BJP fielded Kiran Patel, a Kadva Patel but lost the election to Kunvarji Bavaliya, a Koli. In the 2014 and 2019 elections, the BJP fielded Mohan Kundariya, a Kadva Patel, and won both times.
All five booked are members of the Leuva Patel community.