This poster hints Ahmed Patel as the CM face for Congress in Gujarat

Ahmedabad/Surat: A huge political row has been triggered in poll-bound Gujarat after a poster figured in textile-hub Surat urging the Muslim voters to root for the opposition party and that senior Congress Ahmed Patel will be made the new Chief Minister in the event Congress party comes to power in Gujarat.The poster reportedly figured in Undhan area of Surat and the matter has gone viral on social network and local Gujarati television news channels as well.For his part, Mr Ahmed Patel, a renowned close aide of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, outright denied that he is in the race for Chief Minister's post.

"These are all part of 'doos-prachar' (ill conceived campaign).....Their (BJP) defeat looks certain. In last few days, they have started playing all kinds of kalavazi (tricks) to polarise voters. I was never in the race for Chief Minister and I will never be in that," Mr Patel told reporters. The poster which has Congress party symbol and also photograph of Ahmed Patel alongside Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi says in Gujarati, "In order to ensure unity among Muslims and to make Ahmed Patel 'wazir-e-alam (Chief Minister), Muslim voters should enmasse vote for the Congress party".In fact, there was already speculation on the same for last few days. 

On December 5 itself Amit Malviya, BJP's in-charge of IT cell had tweeted: "The Congress won't win but still the idea of Ahmed Patel as CM is dangerous. Especially after Congress candidate Suleman appealed to Muslims of Gujarat to "work" on one day so that they can do "dadagiri" for 5 years is insidious".There is a feeling among political circle in Gujarat, also considered Hindutva laboratory, that any debate on whether senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel, a Muslim, can become Chief Minister can actually result in polarisation among voters at least in certain quarters in the state.Incidentally, on the last day of campaign for the first phase of polls on December 9, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is supposed to be in Surat on Thursday. (UNI)