Jaitley arrives in Ahmedabad amidst rising anti-Modi wave

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader in charge of Gujarat election affairs, Arun Jaitley arrived in Ahmedabad on Sunday to meet senior leaders for poll-related issues, party sources said.

Jaitley met state party president Purshottam Rupala and other leaders like Om Mathur and discussed issues pertaining to the upcoming assembly poll, the sources said.

He is also likely to meet party workers and also rebel leaders sometime on Monday, the sources said.

His visit assumes significance as there is open opposition to Chief Minister Narendra Modi, and dissident leaders within the state party have been openly voicing their concerns through various forums including holding "farmers meet."

A suspended rebel leader and former state home minister Gordhan Zadafia, who has been vocal about his anti-Modi campaign, on Monday also dashed off a letter to the party high command decrying the depiction of senior leader Keshubhai Patel as a 'Kaurava' of the Mahabharat in a memento given to Modi by one of his supporters in a public function recently.

Suspended MLAs and party workers have also attended functions of the rival Congress party where they have urged people to vote for the Congress.

Even senior leaders like Suresh Mehta categorically said he would not fight the upcoming election under Modi's command.

Gujarat is likely to go to polls by yearend.