Despite three apologies from Parshottam Rupala, the Kshatriya community and Karni Sena have been adamant about cancelling the candidature of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Lok Sabha contender from Rajkot. Now, the Sena has announced a protest at the Kamalam- the BJP headquarters in the state capital, Gandhinagar.

Karni Sena announced on Apr 7 that the members will gather at the Kamalam on Apr 9 at 2 p.m., appealing to the Kshatriyas from all over Gujarat to join with saffron flags and ‘strong’ sticks. 

Owing to the announcement, additional police personnel were deployed in the area.

The protest from Kshatriyas has met with some action from the authorities, as the Karni Sena chief Mahipal Singh Makrana was detained by police, and the Kshatriya women were kept under house arrest after they threatened to ‘johar’ over the issue.

Rupala controversy spreads from Kutch to Surat

The controversy is making its way across Gujarat, as 21 Kshatriya members, along with Karni Sena leaders, were detained in Surat’s Utran, as they were planning to protest a Patidar gathering with black flags.

The Amroli police detained Dhirendrasinh Solanki, Kishorsinh Dabhi, Shambhu Singh Darbar, and Ankitsinh in the matter.

According to reports, black flags of protest fluttered even in a meeting held by the BJP state president CR Patil.

In Kutch, MP Vinod Chavda went to the Antarjal area and was welcomed by the locals. However, soon Kshatriya youth from around the region gathered with banners and black flags, and the MP had to return without executing the scheduled campaign for his constituency.

Damage control

The party is also on its toes with the protests, as consecutive meetings are being held at the BJP headquarters to tackle the situation. According to reports, many former Kshatriya members and MLAs were called to the headquarters to discuss the possible resolution with the community.

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Rupala controversy peaks, Kshatriya gathering in Dhandhuka, BJP grapples with fallout