Ahmed Patel — A quintessential backroom strategist

Rajya Sabha member and senior Congress chief Ahmed Patel, 71, died on Wednesday after a chronic battle with issues arising out of an COVID-19 an infection.

He had contracted the virus greater than a month and a half in the past, on October 1, and was handled at a personal hospital at Faridabad earlier than shifted to Gurugram’s Medanta Medicity after his situation deteriorated.

Popularly often known as ‘Ahmed Bhai’ or ‘AP’ in political circles, Mr. Patel, who served because the highly effective political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, was the quintessential backroom strategist in the course of the 10 yr rule of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

He was by no means part of Manmohan Singh’s Cabinet but loved extra energy than any Cabinet minister.

Known for his loyalty to the Gandhis

Mr. Patel served as a key hyperlink not simply between the Congress and its allies but in addition between the occasion and Mr. Singh’s authorities.

His potential to achieve out to company in addition to political leaders prompted the previous occasion chief Rahul Gandhi, who was not identified to share an amazing relationship with Mr. Patel, to convey him again because the occasion’s treasurer in August 2018.

With the coffers of the Congress occasion a lot depleted forward of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Mr. Patel was anticipated to get donations from all quarters together with trade leaders and assist Congress put up a powerful struggle.

If Pranab Mukherjee was the seen troubleshooter for the UPA, Mr. Patel was, inevitably, the disaster supervisor who firmly remained within the background.

Late night time conferences at his 23 Mother Teresa Crescent residence or at Mukherjee’s 13 Talkatora bungalow had been a part of each political reporter’s take a look at record each time the UPA was confronted with a disaster.

Be it the alleged 2G Spectrum public sale rip-off involving DMK leaders or the walkout by the Left events Indo-US nuclear in July 2008, Mr. Patel was the person that the Congress occasion and Ms. Gandhi relied upon to ‘save’ the UPA authorities.

Corruption expenses

Though his title was thrown up in the course of the cash-for-vote scandal (when the BJP alleged that money was provided to MPs forward of the Left-sponsored No Confidence Vote towards the UPA), a parliamentary panel that probed the scandal did not discover something towards him.

But Mr. Patel’s picture of having fun with ‘extraordinary’ clout in the government because of his proximity to the Gandhi family often lent itself to attacks from the Opposition that levelled serious charges of corruption against him.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had questioned the 71-year-old leader multiple times, as recently as July this year in a money laundering as well as a bank fraud case involving the Gujarat-based Sterling Group.

Mr. Patel, however, called it as political witchhunt and vendetta by his rivals.

While Mr. Patel’s stature grew nationally, the Congress in Gujarat shrunk over time and plenty of blamed his ‘towering presence’ as the rationale why no native chief may develop within the State.

Handpicked as a Parliamentary Secretary by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1985, Mr. Patel had represented the Bharuch contituency thrice (1977,1980 and 1984) as a Lok Sabha member.

A few years after his defeat within the 1989 Lok Sabha polls, he entered the Rajya Sabha in 1993. Since then, he has been elected to the Upper House a number of instances.

His final election to the Upper House in August 2017 displayed his preventing facet as he gave the impression to be up towards your entire BJP, who, after nominating Amit Shah and Smriti Irani for the primary two vacant Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat, was ‘determined’ to disclaim the third seat to the Congress nominee.

The BJP not solely fielded a 3rd candidate however six Congress MLAs had resigned from the Assembly simply days earlier than the election, making it tough for Mr. Patel to safe 44 votes for a win.

He, nevertheless, scraped by the election with no votes to spare. His rival, although, has legally challenged the election.

Known for his technique and administration expertise, Mr. Patel gained many a tough battle however misplaced the one towards COVID.