‘Chaitar chose jail over BJP’: AAP MLA’s wives address rally in Gujarat capital

“Vote in the 2027 elections to avenge the imprisonment of Chaitar Vasava because he chose jail for the sake of society, and he did not join the BJP,” said Shakuntala Vasava, wife of jailed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Dediapada – a tribal constituency in central Gujarat.

She shared the stage with Varsha, Chaitar’s younger wife, at Adivasi Nyay Mahasammelan held in Gandhinagar on Wednesday.

Chaitar Vasava, who is also AAP’s working president in Gujarat, is serving a seven-year sentence.

A sessions court in Rajpipla in Narmada district on June 23 sentenced Chaitar to seven years’ imprisonment in a case involving alleged threats and assault against forest department officials after the department removed crops said to have been cultivated on encroached forest land. The Gujarat High Court had rejected his plea to suspend the sentence on August 24.

The MLA’s wives launched Adivasi Nyay Yatra on October 24 beginning from Umergam in South Gujarat to Ambaji in the north, covering the entire tribal belt.  ‘Adivasi Nyay Mahasammellan’ was the concluding ceremony of the yatra.

Poll pitch

The meeting, attended by hundreds of people from tribal communities,  turned into a pitch for the Gujarat assembly elections which are at least a year away.

Speaking on the occasion, AAP state in-charge Gopal Rai, an MLA from Delhi, targeted the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi citing the election setbacks of US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“There are winds of change, not just in India, but across the world. Your (PM Modi) master, sitting in Israel and supporting your dictatorial policies, Netanyahu’s boat has sunk. Your other master sitting in America, Trump, for whom you went and sought votes, his boat is also sunk. The BJP goes around saying ‘save democracy’ and claims ‘vote chori’ allegations are fake. I want to tell them that the people of Gujarat and India love democracy. They are the descendants of Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Birsa Munda, we will tear you apart with the power of the vote,” said Rai.

Story continues below this ad

“Chaitar has been jailed and the people will respond in 2027 by uprooting the BJP government. The AAP is becoming the voice of the people of Gujarat, the voice of the tribal community, and the voice of farmers in Saurashtra and livestock rearers in North Gujarat,” Rai claimed.

Shakuntala said, “Chaitar Vasava has been kept in jail by the Bharatiya Janata Party, causing deep sorrow and intense anger within the tribal community. The MLA has always fought for the rights of STs, OBCs, minorities and every community. Whenever Chaitar Vasava raises his voice on education, teacher recruitment, student scholarships, and forest and land rights, this dictatorial BJP government sends him to jail. We must avenge this imprisonment by voting in the 2027 elections because Chaitar Vasava chose jail for the sake of society without worrying about his family, but he did not choose to join the BJP.”

The AAP has five MLAs in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly dominated by the BJP with 162 MLAs followed by Congress’s 12.

“It is painful that the leader who fights for our rights is not here on stage among us today. But even while enduring wrongful imprisonment and the hardships of jail, Chaitar has maintained his courage and morale,” said Varsha. She said since the rally started from Umergam, they had “blessings” of mothers and elders.

Story continues below this ad

‘Chaitarbhai stood with us’

Dariyaben Ramanbhai Bariya, Sarpanch of Gopipura Juth Gram Panchayat in Halol Taluka of the Panchmahals, had joined the rally with nearly 200 supporters. She said, “Chaitarbhai is the hero of the adivasi community and for a while, it felt as if that light was about to go out, but his wives have taken up the torch and we have come here to support them. After all, women must support women. They are here with their children. They are managing so much in the absence of their husband, which is a big thing.”

Majeshkumar Vadhera and Bharat Baranda from Vijaynagar in Sabarkantha  expressed confidence that Vasava would be released from prison.

Another group of women who had travelled from Kevadia (Ekta Nagar), the site of the Statue of Unity in Narmada district, said that the yatra and the mahasammelan were important to help free MLA Vasava from prison. Kaushalya and Nirma said, “Shakuntalaben and Varshaben have taken up the mantle. We are with them. Whenever we needed him, Chaitarbhai stood with us and now it is our turn to stand with him.”

Varsha announced that on November 15, a grand celebration would be held in Dediapada to mark the 151st birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, a tribal independence activist.

Story continues below this ad

Gopal Italia, AAP MLA from Visavadar, noted how when many petitioners waited years for their cases to be heard, Vasava’s trial was completed within a year and he was convicted and sentenced to prison.

Speaking about the Gujarat cabinet meeting taking place on the other side of the town, he said, “We hope that God grants these people wisdom, and that after seeing the huge number of people gathered here, they will release Chaitar Vasava.”