Not so fast, Rahul: Is Congress too optimistic about its appeal to Gujarati voters?

Party workers and volunteers are flocking towards the Gujarat Pradesh Congress office in Ahmedabad's affluent Paldi area. For the first time in the last three state elections, the Congress believes it has a genuine chance when polls open on December 9 to defeat the BJP. Rahul Gandhi has been drawing large crowds. And part of the confidence also stems from the potential effect on the elections of three young disruptors Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakore and Jignesh Mevani who command significant followings in their respective castes and are opposed to the BJP.

Is the BJP in trouble in a state it has controlled, except for a brief, negligible period, since 1995? Rajdeep Sardesai, consulting editor at the India Today Group, argues that "only anger can