HELLO FRIENDS. Today, I am here with a legendary story of a great reformer once lived in the North region of Gujarat state. His name is Dalubhai S. Desai and delightedly, he was my maternal grand father who ruled Banaskantha district for three decades and changed all the Socio-political equations of the district forever. He was the most powerful figure in whole North Gujarat region during 1970’s to 1990’s and his greatest empire was often narrated in news papers of that time, too. But for the new generation of 21st century, his legend is forgotten. So, let’s ride through his legendary story which shows terrible power, sense of responsibility, selfless service and a rebellious social and political reformer. This is a story to tell us that how only one man can uplift the whole society or community from harassment, poverty and ignorance to prosperity and reputation. We need such selfless men in each backward casts and communities which can give them respectful life in society.

THE COMPLETE STORY OF SHRI DALUBHAI S. DESAI – The greatest Social and Political Reformer of Banaskantha.

Part 1, 2 & 3.

Part 1: The historic beginning. ..

Late Shri Dalubhai Desai was a God Father, a politician and a social reformer who ruled Banaskantha district for three decades without any concrete constitutional power. Dalubhai Savajibhai Desai, also known as D. S. Desai or by the general nick name of “Dalubha” means the elder and reputable to all, is credited to give a massive 180 degree turn to the social structure of Banaskantha which changed the history of an underdeveloped district forever.

Banaskantha is the most northern shore of the Gujarat state bordered with Rajasthan in North and Pakistan in North west. The district which is divided in east Banaskantha and west Banaskantha by the river Banas was one of the most underdeveloped district of Gujarat state in 1960s where the 35 % population was of Chaudharys. But the Chaudharys were most uneducated, underdeveloped and harassed population of that time. They were terribly suppressed by the atrocities of the Rajputs in western Banaskantha. In eastern side, most of the chaudharys were below poverty line and their social living was full of addictions. Some of the chaudharys who were rich in terms of land also were uneducated. So they didn’t have any political or social influence in the district even after their outstanding majority.  The political ground was under the control of Brahmins of that time.

In the middle of this time, a young man, born in the Desai family of the Chaudharys, came to change the story. He was the first notably educated man came out from the Chaudhary community. He was Dalubhai Desai who had passed out his LLB degree and had started his practice as a criminal lawer at the age of 34, in Palanpur, the district place of Banaskantha. One day, a group of Chaudharys from western shore came to him and urged him to fight their case. Their brother was killed by a Rajput man when he was trying to resist the Rajput guy teasing a Chaudhary girl. Surprisingly, D.S. Desai refused to fight the case and told them “Do not come to me in such coward way. First fight with them for justice. This land belongs to all of us. We all need same respect and rights. Fight for your rights and then come to me. If anything will go wrong way, I will look after you in court.” Now the Chaudharys in western part got moral to fight with the atrocities because they got trust that their savior in Palanpur will save them from legal concicquences. D. S. looked after them for years and restricted some of their punishments from death sentence and life time imprisonment to two or five years jail. And thus he started to be emerged as a powerful entity in Chaudharys of Banaskantha. In six years of the law practice, he became one of the top successful criminal lawyers of the district.

In during these days, Shri Galbabhai Nanjibhai Chaudhary, the only great hearted man and socialist from Chaudhary community that time, came to Dalubhai ( D.S ). Galbabhai, also known as Galbakaka, was the only leader from Chaudharys of Banaskantha and he had love with all the people of the district. He was recognised as “Gandhi of Banas”. It was him who had established the Banas Dairy for the economical uplifting of the farmers and animal heads in the district. He was the president of Jila Panchayat when he came to meet Dalubhai. Galbabhai was a brilliant man but was an uneducated. And now, he started to face problems and conpiracies from his surrounded politics. So he convinced D. S. to be with him in Jila Panchayat so that people can’t cheat him. D.S. was appointed as a senator in Jila Panchayat to be like a watchman of Galbabhai. And here he did his job brilliantly and saved Galbabhai two times from a political conspiracy. Galbabhai found that D.S. was a most powerful man born in the district and he had a great potential to reform the social scenario of district by his vision and knowledge.

Galbabhai started to try getting a ticket for D.S in next assembly elections. He did everything that he could do. Dalubhai himself had said many times about that time that “I have sawn Galbakaka to touch and press the knees of the big political masters to give me an election ticket. I objected many time to him that “Kaka, I feel ashamed on my self when you touch their knees for me. Please don’t do it. I don’t want this.” And every time Galbakaka said me the same thing, “I am pressing their knees today so that they can press your knees tomorrow.” Dalubhai had said very emotionally once, “I had never wanted to join politics but when I saw Galbakaka’s such selfless service to the society, I understood what he wanted me to do for the society. Even today when I remembered him, it remembered me the demands and expectations he had joined with me. And that thing pushes me to do whatever that I am doing.”

Finally, Galbakaka’s work got its return and Dalubhai got ticket from Dhanera taluka. Now, D.S had a full ground to show his powers of speech, influence and action. In 1972, he won his first election with heavy margin and became a MLA of Congress to enter the Vidhansabha of Gujarat state at the age of 42.

And from here started the journey of a God Father which turned the history of an underdeveloped community and an underdeveloped district forever…

Today in Banaskantha, almost all the big leaders, MLAs, MP, Ministers of state government and central Government, Chairmans and Directors of Banas dairy, Banas Bank, Market yard and Jila Sahkari Sangh are Chaudharys. There is at least one Chaudhary doctor in almost all medical branches. The penetration of Chaudharys in District’s Markets and businesses is increased almost 500% in last 10 years and now they are in parallel to the Patels who have dominated the markets from decades. In most of the government recruitments of last 10 years, the community from which the most number of people are recruited is chaudhary.

This is the revolution which was started by Shree Dalubhai Desai. How he did this? Let’s see in the second part.

Part 2: The rise of an Empire…

After being elected as the MLA from Dhanera in 1972, D. S. Desai left his practice as a top criminal lawyer and never returned to it till his last breath. He was praised for his simplicity during his years of being MLA. He used to come at bus stand after walking one Km everyday and picked up bus from his native village Jagana to reach the Vidhansabha in Gandhinagar. But on 17 July 1973, Chimanbhai Patel toppled the Ghanshyam Oza government and became the Chief minister. He broke the Congress but D.S. Desai remained in congress and opposed Chimanbhai Patel and thus acquired enmity of the chief Minister Patel. Chimanbhai tried to revenge this when he came to know that a labor had suicide in D.S. Desai’s oil mill due to his quarrel with his wife regarding his habit of drinking. Chimanbhai trapped D.S. Desai’s elder son in this and made him to be poisoned. D.S. was broken. He sent a message to CM that if he was a true politician and he had the moral to fight then fight with him (D.S) not with children. Chimanbhai called D.S. to meet and in that confidential talk Chimanbhai understood that actually D.S. was a most clever, intelligent and brave politician and he should be his friend not enemy. Both D.S. and Chimanbhai compromised the issue and became friend with the gift of Chimanbhai as D.S. Desai’s elder son’s release. But some month later, on 9th February 1974 Chimanbhai Patel was forced out of CM office by the Nav Nirman movement and reelections are declared. But this time D.S. didn’t show any interest in being MLA. For him it was like a showpiece to sit in the Vidhansabha and raise his finger on some issues without any power. D.S. had many ideas for his district’s social reform and for that he needed power.

He fought the election of Jila Panchayat and won it by overthrowing the two decade long Brahmin dominency in politics of Banaskantha. He had become a face of change and hope in the poor people and in those who were suppressed and harassed. And this helped him to win the Jila Panchayat and become the president of it. In those days, the powers of Jila Panchayat president was extremely high and he was like a boss of district. He first started the political awareness in the poor and suppressed castes of the district in which Chaudharys were in majority. He choose a government serviceman named Joitabhai Patel from Dhanera and another Government serviceman Parabatbhai Patel from Tharad and forced them to enter in politics. They both were from the Chaudharys of west district, the cast which was completely suppressed and crushed under Rajput dominency even after its majority. D.S. choose Mafabhai Desai from Rabari cast in another taluka of west district. First he gave these new comers the tickets for Taluka Panchayat, later made them president of Taluka Panchayat and when they became ready, D.S. gave them tickets for Vidhansabha elections. But it was not so simple. The dominated casts of those days spreaded a terror and fear during an election of Taluka Panchayat in Tharad where Parabatbhai Patel was fighting from D.S. Desai’s end. The Rajputs and other dominated casts strictly warned people not to give vote and made an whole area like a house arrest. D.S. Desai reached there with a group of police force and dialed 142 cases of those anarchists. D.S. himself went to house by house and told everyone to come out and vote. Thus he made Parabatbhai to win his first election of Taluka Panchayat. Parbatbhai is today a sitting MLA from Tharad and was a Minister in Narendra Modi Cabinet as CM of Gujarat.

When these followers of D.S. Desai settled as MLA in West district, a kind of awakening and morals to fight rose in Chaudharys and other supressed castes. Now the Rajputs lost their dominance and they showed their wish to compromise and peace. D.S. Desai called them in his chamber and told “My dear ones. As a president of this district, I am your father and you all are my children. But how a father can bear that his one son is doing atrocities on his other children! What I need is a balance. Prosperity and growth for all of us but more for those who had been suppressed and underdeveloped till date.” After that he provided some political space to Rajputs too in Taluka Panchayat and made a political balance in West.

Dalubhai Desai with Socially and politically active people of that time.

Dalubhai Desai with his prime disciple Joitabhai Patel who is a celebrated sitting MLA from Dhanera today

In eastern district, where D.S. himself was born, was a relatively educated area due to Brahmins, Jains and other prosper communities. Still the Member of Loksabha was from Brahmin and for that equation D.S. prepared a representative from minority castes named B.K. Gadhavi. B.K. was D.S. Desai’s friend and also a colleague as a lawyer. D.S. brought him in Jila Panchayat by making him senator of education department. It was coming under D.S. Desai’s observation and domination. D.S. started to promote B.K. by ordering people that whenever they gave him any invitation, they must write down B.K. Gadhavi’s name with him. He started to send B.K. at various places to do his work so that people can recognize him. And finally, D.S. managed to give him a ticket for Loksabha election. Up to this time, whole of the Banaskantha’s chaudharys and other poor castes were listening and obeying blindly to D.S. Desai’s every order. In other words, more than 60 percent of people in district was doing the same thing what D.S. Desai was telling them to do. Gadhavi won the Loksabha election under the hand of the most powerful man of the district. This was the time when D.S. Desai was the ultimate Godfather of Banaskantha. Most of the MLA of the district including the MP was D.S. Desai’s disciple. For two decades he was the person who choose which one will be MLA and which one will be MP in the district. He was the political boss of the district. But D.S. never let the social balance to go at either side. It is documented that once when he saw that the chaudharys had started to dominate politicaly in west, he had left his own ticket of Vidhansabha elections and provided it to a Brahmin candidate. This was the time when his glory and reputation crossed the boundaries of state. The former Loksabha Speaker and renowned Politician Balaram Jakhad became D.S. Desai’s close friend. This was the time when any central government leader came to Banaskantha, without any top constitutional post D.S. went there to welcome him followed by the gang of his MLAs and MP. Once when prime minister Indira Gandhi landed in Deesa, she was received by MP and MLAs of district. Soon after a formal reception with them, she asked “Who is Dalubhai Desai? I want to meet him.” Dalubhai was called to meet her and Indira Gandhi invited him to sit in her helicopter to reach Palanpur where in the way they had discussed social and political equations of those days.

But during his Jila Panchayat presidency the greatest revolutionary act he did was the mass recruitment of poor and suppressed castes in government jobs, even in some illegal ways. The story of that greatest revolution which had introduced a great political thought that time is going to be discussed in 3rd part below.

PART 3 : THE PEAK AND FALL OF THE THREE DECADE LONG EMPIRE…

CONCLUSION of

The Dalubhai Desai story…

During the years of Jila Panchayat presidency, D.S. Desai prepared a whole set of new leaders in each area of the Banaskantha district. These leaders were Joitabhai Patel and Nathabhai Patel from Dhanera, Parbatbhai and Mavajibhai Patel in Tharad, Bhemabhai Patel in Diyodar, Mafabhai Desai (Rabari community), Kalubhai Tarak in Kankarej and Parthibhai Bhatol and B.K. Gadhavi in Palanpur. These all leaders were projected from under developed and suppressed casts. Some of them became MLA, some became Taluka Panchayat president, some became the chairmans of cooperative unions.

But the massive service of D.S. Desai to the society came by an underground way. He started the mass recruitment in the staff of Jila Panchayat and also in places of Talatis, Gram Sevaks, Clarks and peons throughout the district. And in these all recruitment, all the recruited persons were from poor and underdeveloped communities. In his own village, Jagana, D.S. Desai gave one job per one family either it is chaudhary family or Brahmin or carpenters or Prajapatis or Panchals or Dalits or the street cleaners. His style to provide job was very bold. When a poor parent came to him to say “Sir, this is my boy, somehow passed or failed in 10th. Please give him some work.” D.S. Desai saw a Clerk sitting in his Jila Panchayat office and called him to tell “The table you sit on is actually two tables put nearer to one another. Separate one and put a chair near it and then get this boy to understand half of your work. He is your colleague now.” This is how he recruited the poors and suppressed. Many times, his style was strongly objected but every time he shut everyone up with his master logic. He told “Just 30 years has been passed to our country’s independence and this country is full of poors and uneducates. If you will insist from now on that only the qualify should get the job, only the rich family will get it. Come on! They are humans. Teach them how to work and they will learn it. They know write and read and that is enough. Strengthen them with jobs today so that their children can come to us one day with qualifications we want.” This is the same thought Prime Minister Modi projected this Independence day for low rank recrutements. It is extremely difficult to measure how many recruitments D.S. Desai did but people estimate it above 5 thousand. Some believe it above 10. But it is also necessary to say that 70 % of the people he recruited officially on paper were Chaudharys. And he faced official inquiry also for this. He escaped from that inquiry by saying the officials, came from Ahmedabad, that “Sir, this is the list of those thousands of people I have recruited. Tell me how many of them are Chaudharys?” When the officers checked the list, it was only 2 to 3 % chaudharys there and they took back all the charges from D.S. Desai. Actually, the chaudharys of Banaskantha were writing their sub surname as their last name, for example Vagda, Jua, Bhatol, Mor, Patel, Parmar, Bagla, Judal etc. And it was imppssible for the officers to know how many of these subcasts were from Chaudharys and how many were from others but D.S. had known them all. D.S. Desai had a moral clarification for this pro cast recruitment. He told “Everyone in past did the same and made their casts strong and that’s why the other casts became lower to them. Wherever I had known that any poor person needs help from me, I have done my best for him without seeing his cast. Whichever person of whichever cast who came to me for job, I have provided him the job as my own people. But I am from a Chaudhary society, so but naturally the poor families of Chaudharys are more in my knowledge and my contact. That’s why they came to me routinely than the other casts.  I have helped them as the people most known to me, not as my own people. Whole Banaskanthian civilization is my people. But, Chaudharys are 35% population of the district. So for the social uplifting of the district the uplifting of Chaudharys is also more necessary.” His balance was so truthful that even today the other casts of the district including Brahmins, Prajapatis, Patels, Carpenters and Dalits love and respect D.S. Desai more than the Chaudharys of Banaskantha. The devotion to D.S. Desai is at its height in the chaudharys of west Banaskantha.

Even today, if you will go in Jila Panchayat of Banaskantha, you will come in contact with people who will have D.S. Desai’s photo in their purse. Even today if you will go to the western district, you will see many families doing worship of D.S. Desai’s photo near God and Godess’ photos. These are completely ground level fact of today’s Banaskantha. One day when a D.S. Desai’s follower asked him that “Sir, why you are not trying to put your large memorial (statue) somewhere in the district as you did so much for the civilization?” D.S. replied “The thousands of people, whom I have given job, when their children will come out in society as engineers, doctors and teachers, they will be my living memorials. That whole future society will be my monument.”

Apart from recruitments, D.S. Desai had done some other great works. The western part of Banaskantha is nearer to the desert of Kachchh and so it is too dry and salty area. There was no facility of drinking water in that huge area. So, later on in his Jila Panchayatpresidency, D.S. Desai had planted a special pipeline of drinking water from Eastern part to the western end of the district which still live today. He also managed to get the irrigation canal in the western dry land but the Vaniks of that area scared of the future prosperity of farmers by that canal. And so they misguided the ignorant farmers that their land will be stolen from them for the canals. The ignorant farmers objected D.S. Desai’s move and angry D.S. cancelled the project by saying “You are proper for what you are.” And for 35 years the farmers had to repent on their ignorance because the same canal came to the part after 35 years in 2014 due to the tries of present MLA Shri Shankarbhai Chaudhary, the third generation politician after D.S Desai’s.

The height of D.S. Desai’s selfless service was so high that we can’t see its top even while we bend our head at full degree. Inspite of the complete moral and political control on the people of Banaskantha and in spite of his great contacts with top congress leaders in Delhi, he never took MP or MLA ticket. He was not sure that if he will go to Delhi, the other local politicians will be able serve the people or not. So he kept the ground of the Banaskantha’s politics and send his friend B.K. Gadhavi to Delhi as MP. But after sometime B.K. Gadhavi started to make his group in Delhi and convinced them that he is the only capable one to be MP in Banaskantha. He tried to overthrow D.S. Desai’s empire but D.S. had the majority of votes in his pocket. Still D.S. didn’t project himself as a candidate of MP but when J.V. Shah succeeded to get ticket from Moraraji Desai’s Janta Dal after emergency, D.S. told people to vote J.V. Shah and as a result J.V. Shah, a minority candidate, won the election and B.K. Gadhavi came home. But the peak of D.S. Desai’s selflessness reflected then after. After being formed the Janata Dal’s government under Moraraji Desai’s prime ministership, the government didn’t let the congressmen to do work at Jila Panchayat level. This was the time when D.S. Desai wanted to plant the drinking water pipeline to the west district but he was not being allowed and was harassed. So, to fulfill the people’s basic need, he changed his party and joined Janta Dal. As a Janta Dal’s leader he continued as Jila Panchayat president and executed his plans of social welfare. In 1980, when Janta Dal lost and Indira Gandhi won, D.S. Desai came back to Congress again. Many of the researcher of D.S. Desai’s political carrier call this as D. S. Desai’s biggest mistake because the Delhi leadership of Congress lose some faith and respect in D.S. Desai after this.

Thus, when today’s politicians try to take advantage of their cast’s majority to become a MP or MLA, D.S. DESAI was the man who had sacrificed all that fame and power for the welfare of the society. Today, when the politicians change their party to get the election ticket and political opportunity, D.S. Desai was the man who had changed the party to provide his people their basic needs. And for this he paid a huge price in terms of criticism and political unfaithfulness! A true people’s leader!

Now in 1985, a terrible trouble came to poor farmers and animal heads of Banaskantha. Banas Dairy, which was built for the poor widows and animal heads to earn some money from milking their cows, came in terrible crisis. Due to mismanagement of the second chairman after Galbakaka and heavy corruption in the staff, Dairy lost its earning completely. But somehow, to give her some final breaths, they were showing earning of 12000 annually. This was lesser than a peon’s annual sellery in those days. The Dairy was going to be closed. But suddenly D.S. Desai came to her rescue and decided to do some final attempts from his side. First, he resigned from his almost decade long post of Jila Panchayat presidency. He was also the Chairman of Banas Bank those days, the Bank which was set up as a cooperative organisation. D.S. told bank’s manager to pass rs. 1 crore loan for Dairy. The manager showed his inability to pass such huge loan. D.S. gave him ultimatum of seven days that “Either you pass the loan or I will change the manager next week and he will pass the loan.” But the manager took it normally and D.S. did the same what he had told. Now, he became the chairman of Banas Dairy and used those crore rupees in paying debts, establishing new machinery and to make the transparent sectioning of the whole process of milk receiving, manufacturing and packing. He fired some corrupt officers and appointed his trustful men in the system and within months he took on whole power of Banas dairy in his hand like a dictator. He kept the dairy away from politics and inspired people village by village to bring up animals and earn money. Gradually, the dairy picked up and the daily collection of milk started to be boosted. In 1991, the Banas Dairy was collecting 50,000 liters of milk per day and her milk was distributed throughout the state. Some big ice cream companies like Vadilal was Dairy’s regular customers. The owner of Vadilal ice cream, Ramchandrabhai Gandhi, became D.S. Desai’s friend. In 1991, D.S. Desai felt that whatever he could do for dairy, he had done. Now there was no meaning of capturing the post of chairmanship. So, he called a meeting of his dairy directors from different zones of the district. And with a supreme Vito power he choose Parthibhai Bhatol as the next chairman with an announcement of his own resign. Parthibhai was one of those directors of dairy whom D.S. had projected in politics in those days. And from that day on to this day, Parthibhai Bhatol is the chairman of Banas Dairy and by proving D.S. Desai’s trust righteous, he had brought the dairy to a new level in this 24 years. Today, Banas Dairy is the Biggest dairy of the Asia in terms of milk collection and production where almost 42 lakh liters milk comes to the Dairy every day. Today dairy is the lifeline of Banaskanthian society which gives employement to more than 5000 people and buissness to lakhs of families by animal husbandary. Parthibhai himself has told at many occasion that “If this dairy exist today, it is because of Dalubhai Desai. If D.S. Desai was not there, the dairy would become a history.” But now whatever history this dairy will write, D.S. Desai’s greatness and selfless service will be more and more celebrated. Even after leaving dairy in 1991, D.S. Desai kept his eye on the management of the dairy and tried to keep it away from politics till his last breath in 2004. During his years as Banas Dairy Chairman, he also became a director of all Gujarat electrical board in Baroda. But the two greatest gifts from this legend were still to come for society and for the Chaudhary community. And perhaps those two were the last two gifts from his selfless life.

Till now, D.S. Desai had uplifted his Chaudhary community, together with whole society, by giving jobs and by establishing a whole second generation of political leaders everywhere. But still the education rate was very low in Chaudharys of Banaskantha. At the other hand, a social leader of Charada village in Mahesana district named Haribhai was fighting a decade long fight to give reservation to Chaudharys of whole gujarat in OBC. He was also a selfless socialist who had spent his life in welfare of Chaudhary community without touching the politics. But still Haribhai had not received any positive response from Gujarat government. D.S. Desai had now understood that to bring a social and moral quality in Chaudhary community education was most necessary and to bring an educational revolution society needed a beginning. He determined to finalize this work of giving chaudharys the OBC reservation. Chimanbhai Patel, who had always been a great friend of D.S. Desai was the chief Minister that time. D.S. contacted him and tried to convince him that the social and educational condition of Chaudharys in Banaskantha is quite lower. Haribhai and Bhemabhai Patel, another political disciple of D.S. Desai, boosted the demand at OBC Departement of the government and made the whole mission live. D.S. was continuously building pressure on Chimanbhai and finally, in 1994 chaudharys were included in OBC in Gujarat only. D.S. Desai and Chimanbhai had tried it for the national level too but certain political reasons, it couldn’t be done. Today, Chaudharys of Gujarat are in OBC in Gujarat but not for any central government exams or recruitment. But though it was a huge success for that community. But when Chimanbhai had called Shri Haribhai, D.S. Desai and other leaders of Chaudhary community to enjoy the final agreement by the government, D.S. Desai didn’t go there and went Bombay for medical check up. During the function, Chimanbhai asked to the leaders of Chaudhary community that “Where is your man who had squeezed me continuously for this cause?” It was another side of D.S. Desai. He didn’t feel comfortable when some praised him or when some awarded or rewarded him. He just did things and wished that people remembered him at least for some reasonable time.

And then came his final gift in 1996. actually, Banaskantha was a biggest producer of mustard and farmers had to go to different different places to sell them including some private oil mills. And then the same farmers were buying the mustard oil from those mills on high price. Moreover, the quality of that oil was also questionable. D.S. Desai who was then 68 years old and had started to face physical problems, found a solution. He went to Dr. Vergis Courian in Anand and convinced him to give financial help and authority in building a farmers’ own cooperative oil mill. After convincing Dr. Courian, he got help from Chimanbhai again and got a huge land at Badarpura village between Palanpur and Deesa at the cost of only 1 rs. Per square feet. And then with the help of Dr. Courian lead NDDB, D.S. Desai established Asia’s biggest mustard oil mill there which had a capacity to produce 500 tonnes (500,000 kg) mustard oil per day. D.S. became it’s first chairman and also the Chairman of all Gujarat Cooperative Oil seeds Growers’ Federation Ltd (GROFED). Thus, by building two largest cooperative organisations in Banaskantha district, Banas Dairy and the Badarpura Oil Mill, D.S. Desai became the father of cooperative sector of Banaskantha. But then, his health had started to give call. His sharpness, carefulness and strongness had started to be declined. And one day the manager of Badarpura oil mill sold a whole tanker of oil illegally. Some of D.S. Desai’s all time opposites tried to pull D.S. inside it. This was the same time when D.S. was suffering from sever prostate problem. D.S. Desai immediately gave resignation from all the chairman posts from Badarpura Oil Mill to GROFED and declared the finish line of all his services.

Dalubhai Desai in between his famous court of politicians, meeting to his beloved journalist friend Devendrabhai Patel

Dalubhai Desai in his famous court with Vipul bhai Chaudhary, Joitabhai Patel, Haribhai Chaudhary, Bk Gadhavi and Parthibhai Bhatol

Dalubhai Desai inbetween the mass of people came to celebrate his lefetime achievement function.

Dalubhai Desai with all his prepared politicians

Dalubhai Desai with B.K. Gadhavi

Dalubhai Desai with the woman politicians influenced by him

Dalubhai Desai with Former MP J. V. Shah in Japan

Dalubhai Desai with J V Shah

Dalubhai Desai – The Godfather in style

Chimanbhai Patel had already advised him to leave these all and went to Delhi as a MP. D.S. had also showed his interest then for the retirement as the MP. This was the another difference between him and others. The others start their ambition with MP ticket when for D.S. Desai it was retirement. Chimanbhai had already prepared the Delhi Congress high commission to give D.S. Desai an MP ticket. But before the election came Chimanbhai died during his active term as CM. Now when the election came B.K. Gadhavi started his try. B.K. Gadhavi had already earned a ministership as a state level Finance Minister of central government in previous assemblies. He had made his roots very strong in Delhi where at other side D.S. Desai was still facing the unfaithfulness in Congressmen due to his step of changing the party once. Former CM of Gujarat Madhavsinh Solanki backed B.K. Gadhavi and strictly advised party to give ticket to B.K. Gadhavi who had already reached Delhi from two months and had started lobbying. D.S. Desai was at his home and watching this whole drama. All the tickets of Gujarat were declared except of Banaskantha. Finally, Central leadership had to knee at B.K. Gadhavi’s lobby and it was told to D.S. that he can fight from Sabarkatha and B.K. will fight from Banaskantha.

D.S. refused to fight from Sabarkatha and told B.K., when he came back, that “I have made you and now it’s a time when I will throw you down”. Meanwhile, BJP who was searching the candidates for Loksabha election throughout the country, put it’s choice for Banaskantha on a Diamond broker in Mumbai names Haribhai Chaudhari. Co-insidently, Haribhai was also from Jagana village, the village of D.S. Desai. D.S. Desai used all his powers to help Haribhai to win and to defeat B.K. Gadhavi. Haribhai had lived a long life in mumbai. He didn’t know about the social equations or in his own words he didn’t know the borders of Banaskantha when he got the ticket. At the age of 70, D.S. went to Haribhai’s house at 12 o’clock of every night and taught him what to say in speech and what not to. D.S. told all his followers all over the district to vote Haribhai Chaudhary, the candidate of BJP. And as it was sure, the news came that Haribhai Chaudhary defeated B.K. Gadhavi where actually, it was D.S. Desai who had defeated B.K. Gadhavi. It was the election where BJP ran 13 month government under Atal Bihari Vajapayi’s prime ministership.

Actually, it is documented that in early 1990s when D.S. Desai was trying to retired from domestic politics and when BJP was continuously rising, Keshubhai Patel, who was the main leader of those days’ BJP and who later on became the first Chief Minister from BJP, had come to D.S. Desai and offered him to come in BJP. Keshubhai had offered D.S. Desai a complete authority of Banaskantha district BJP and also a MP ticket with an ambessador car. But D.S. Desai had told Keshubhai with respect that “I know the time coming is yours but I had changed party once in past and very few had understood my real reason. But if today I will jump in to BJP, all the wrong alleagation and criticism they had joined to me would become right. And I can’t let my truth to be wrong.” If D.S. Desai had joined BJP, he was a minister today and his empire would sustain even more strongly in 21 century too. But Dalubhai Desai had always remembered how Galbakaka had given him first ticket. That was given him to service the society, not to acquire individual power. He never compromised with his ideals and rules.

With the victory of Haribhai Chaudhary, D.S. Desai took complete retirement from politics and returned home as a legend which was never to be forgotten in Banaskantha history. From 1972 when he left his lawership and became an MLA to 1998 when he defeated Shri B.K. Gadhavi by Haribhai, he ruled the district for two and a half decade with one hand and one order. More interestingly, B.K. Gadhavi and D.S. Desai remained friend till their end. Their clash was political only but in personal life they both respected each other and cared each other. B.K. Gadhavi had once told that “I have not eaten with my uncle who brought me up but I have eaten with Dalubhai in one common dish for many time.” In their lawyership days Dalubhai Desai, B.K. Gadhavi and Shri Shirish Modi was the ‘triputi’ of closed friends. Whereas the no. 1 criminal lawyer of today’s North gujarat, Shri M. L. Chaudhary was also prepared by Dalubhai Desai. After D.S. Desai had left the practice in 1972, he had given his office to M.L. who was a newly came out graduate then, learning the lessons of lawyership under D.S.. Still today, M.L. Chaudhary runs his most successful private practice from the same office where D.S. had spent his early years of lawyership practice.

Dalubhai Desai with his beloved friends and followes

Dalubhai Desai with Dr. Manmohan Singh

Today, Haribhai Chaudhary is a State level Home Minister of Modi Government, Shri Joitabhai Patel is a sitting MLA of Dhanera, Parbatbhai Patel is a sitting MLA from Tharad and was a state health minister in Narendra Modi’s cabinet as CM of Gujarat, Joitabhai and Parabatbhai won the election against Nathabhai Patel and Mavajibhai Patel respectively. And they both were also projected by Shri Dalubhai Desai. Shri Parthibhai Bhatol is still the Chairman of Banas Dairy, Shankarbhai Chaudhary is a sitting MLA of Vav and a state health minister of present Anandiben cabinet. He is also the Chairman of Banas Bank today and he is the only leader of present Banaskantha who has not been directly come out by D.S. Desai. Dalsangbhai Chaudhary, former Jila Panchayat president, told once that “He was Dalubhai Desai who made us to step our first foot in politics.” All the chairman’s of Market yard, Jila Sahkari Sangh and Krishi Vikas sangh are Chaudharys today. There is at least one doctor from Chaudharys in almost all medical branches. The penetration of Chaudharys in Markets and businesses is increased almost 500% in last 10 years and now they are almost in level to the Patidars who are in dominance in the market from decades. In most of the government recruitments of last 10 years, the community from which the most number of people are recruited is chaudhary in all over north Gujarat. This is the revolution brought by Dalubhai Desai from a suppressed and harassed cast to the most dominated cast of the district.

He never sustained on any post for a long time. He never tried to capture any political place for him and his sons. He has three sons but none of them is in politics. He never gave his legacy to any of his family member or any of his Desai clan’s member. He gave his legacy to people whom he believed proper. He never tried to set up his monument. The only statue of him in the district was inagurated at Badarpura Oil Mill after his death. Personally, Dalubhai Desai was not in favor of too much saturation of politicians from one community. In one of his final speeches during retirement, he told “This society doesn’t need politicians now. These Khadi wearing people will become selfish and will use you for votes. When all the politicians will be from Chaudharys, they will fight with one another for power. This society needs doctors, engineers, scientists and great teachers. They will leads us outside the boundaries of this district and will bring the real revolution of thoughts.” And his own grand children have walked on his this wish. His one grand son Yashwant is a software engineer at IBM company in Australia. He has owned a million dolor house in Sydney. His second grand son Dhiren is an automobile engineer in Mumbai and a highly paid Deputy manager at Mahendra and Mahendra company. His third grand son Jeetendra is a executive in Banas Bank. His two grand daughters Rekha and Nilam are settled in Australia with their husbands. Rekha and her husband Haresh own a NEWS PAPER agency and a coffee shop in Sydney. His third grand daughter Nikita is a Homeopathy doctor who lives in Surat with her engineer husband works in IOCL. D.S. Desai’s fourth grand son who is his daughter’s son, Kaushik, is a dental surgeon in Palanpur and also a writer and philosopher. His book based on science of Upanishads is launched by Hourable Chief Minister of Gujarat and today, it is available in 150 countries of the world. Kaushik is also a collumnist in Gujarat Smachar’s RAVIPURTI where he writes articles about social reforming of modern Indian society.

Thus, the three decade long empire of Dalubhai Desai remained full with great reforms, mile stones, turning points, achievements, revolutions, ideologies, social values and a prosper vision.

After retirement, Dalubhai faced three major surgeries on his body and gradually his body started to be declined. Finally, on 23rd April, 2004, he took his last breath and the greatest Godfather and the greatest reformer who ever lived on the land of Banaskantha went to God’s court.

Regards,

Dr. Kaushik Chaudhary

http://www.projectiontruthbykc.com