Rajendra Shekhawat at his Amravati residence

Amravati, Oct. 9: At the campaign office of Sunil Deshmukh, sitting MLA and expelled Congress rebel candidate against the President’s son, a team of campaign managers prepared duty charts of specific tasks for a steadily entering stream of supporters.

Two supporters were ordered to string up a cardboard cut-out of a TV set — Deshmukh’s election symbol — carrying his campaign slogan under a beaming photograph.

“Breaking News. The development of Amravati is Sunil Deshmukh’s first and last goal,” the cut-out soon screamed outside the campaign office.

Barely 3km away, a larger group of onlookers and supporters crowded the front lawn of the Amravati residence of Rajendra ‘Raosaheb’ Shekhawat, President Pratibha Patil’s son and the official Congress nominee for the seat.

But each time a supporter aired campaign concerns to Shekhawat’s aides, he was told to wait till the candidate was free to address their queries.

Both Shekhawat and Deshmukh are citing Amravati’s development as the mudda (issue) on which they hope to garner votes in Maharashtra’s most closely watched tussle in the October 13 Assembly polls.

But aides of both candidates admit that the real battle for the seat is being fought behind the scenes between a team of managers with Deshmukh, and the influence of a single person behind Shekhawat.

Not the President — though voters have been flooded with SMSes lampooning Shekhawat’s strengths by citing Shashi Kapoor’s Deewar dialogue “Mere paas maa hai” — but her husband and Rajendra’s father Devisingh Shekhawat.

“The only real concern for me is in the organisation of the campaign. It is still slightly chaotic, unorganised. But we will change that,” Rajendra Shekhawat admitted, driving back to his residence after the morning’s campaign.

Of the 21 Congress councillors in the Amravati civic body, 19 have openly pledged support to Deshmukh and even accompanied him when he filed his nomination as an Independent.

Around half of these corporators largely enjoy influence only in neighbouring Badnera constituency — carved out of Amravati city — but their experience in campaign management is assisting Deshmukh.

Former Amravati mayor Milind Chimote, and Shankarrao Hingasapure — state Congress general secretary till he quit the party in support of Deshmukh — are co-ordinating the campaign from Deshmukh’s headquarters.

In contrast, the Shekhawat camp is depending on Devisingh’s quiet, behind-the-scenes campaign support to make up for any organisational weaknesses on the ground.

Devisingh Shekhawat has largely stayed away from the public eye, but his mere presence in Amravati appears to be leaving Deshmukh supporters jittery.

Shekhawat senior was the first mayor of Amravati, an MLA from this seat between 1990 and 1995 — and still wields influence across most communities here, both camps concede. Pratibha Patil was an MLA from neighbouring Jalgaon for 30 years and an MP from Amravati subsequently.

“They are misusing official posts for Rajendra Shekhawat. It is extremely sad,” alleged Chimote.

The people of Amravati, Chimote argued, had seen the Patil-Shekhawat family’s repeated “failure” to fulfil their promises.

“They have only grabbed land to set up institutions named after themselves. In contrast, the people can see the development under Deshmukh over the past ten years (Deshmukh has been MLA here since 1999),” Hingasapure said.

But Shekhawat is countering Deshmukh’s allegations, bombarding the voters of Amravati with development promises he claims are supported by heavy industries minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and junior commerce minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

“He is making allegations because he has nothing else to offer. He has only built two flyovers, of which one has faulty design and has led to seven deaths,” alleged Shekhawat about Sunil Deshmukh.

The youths of Amravati lack employment opportunities because of Deshmukh’s inability to attract industry and jobs, Shekhawat said.

“Getting jobs and industry will be my prime focus if elected,” Shekhawat said.

Apart from Vilasrao Deshmukh and Scindia, Union power minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, chief minister Ashok Chavan, cricketer-turned MP Mohammed Azharuddin and actor Suniel Shetty have campaigned for Shekhawat.