Ex-Gujarat CM set to campaign for Congress in Gandhinagar civic polls slated for Oct 11

Former Gujarat Chief Minister Shankersinh Vaghela, 86, is reportedly on the verge of joining the Congress party after nearly a decade-long absence. Vaghela recently joined the 'Punah Van Adhikar Satyagraha' campaign in Khopi village of Sagbara taluka in Narmada district to support tribal rights over forest land. The village witnessed a sit-in protest in August over the rights to over 3000 acres of forest land.

Vaghela addressed the tribals and stated, "Those sitting in Gandhinagar and Delhi are enemies of reservation. We have to decide that in the 2027 Gujarat elections, we do not want this government. There are no basic facilities, such as education and health, for tribals even as malnutrition is the highest among tribals."

Sources confirm that Vaghela will also campaign for Congress in the upcoming Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC) elections on October 11. An announcement regarding Vaghela's return to the Congress is expected during Navratri. Tribal farmers and leaders, including Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee president Amit Chavda and MLA Anant Patel, launched the 'Punah Van Adhikar Satyagraha' in Khopi village on Friday to demand legal rights and access to farming land.

Chavda warned that if the demands of tribals are not addressed, they will "march towards Gandhinagar." He accused the state government of using the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill as a way to divert public attention from core issues. President Droupadi Murmu recently granted assent to the UCC bill.