Five BJP MLAs from Vadodara district have approached Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, alleging that senior district officials are disregarding development-related inputs from elected representatives and neglecting public grievances, a move they say is hampering governance and damaging the government’s image on the ground.
In a letter submitted on Thursday to the Chief Minister’s office in Gandhinagar, Shailesh Mehta (Dabhoi), Ketan Inamdar (Savli), Dharmendrasinh Vaghela (Waghodia), Akshay Patel (Karjan) and Chaitanyasinh Zala (Padra) sought immediate intervention against what they described as an unresponsive and high-handed administrative approach in Vadodara.
The legislators alleged that routine development works recommended by them in their respective constituencies are being ignored by the district administration, forcing citizens to struggle even for basic services. They claimed that the functioning of the administration has made it increasingly difficult for the common man to get legitimate work done.
According to the MLAs, key officials, including the District Collector, District Development Officer, Superintendent of Police and Commissioner of Police, are projecting an overly positive picture to the state government while overlooking the actual challenges faced by residents. This, they said, has resulted in the government being kept away from the real situation at the grassroots level.
Significantly, the issue of bureaucratic functioning is not new within the ruling party. BJP MLAs in the state have, on multiple occasions, raised concerns over officers allegedly sidelining elected representatives.
Nearly eight years ago, in 2017, at least three BJP MLAs from Vadodara had publicly protested against what they termed “high-handed” behaviour by bureaucrats, highlighting an ongoing friction between the administration and political leadership even within the same party.
In their latest letter, the MLAs accused certain officials of acting arbitrarily and on personal whims, while concealing facts from the government. They further alleged that some officers display an attitude of superiority towards both citizens and elected representatives, undermining democratic accountability.
The legislators also claimed that officials have shown resentment when citizens approach their local MLAs for help, instead of directly dealing with the administration. Such an approach, they warned, discourages public participation and weakens trust in governance.
The MLAs urged the Chief Minister to take action against what they termed “erring” officials and reminded him that similar concerns had been verbally conveyed to the government in the past, but without any tangible outcome.
According to reports, Savli MLA Ketan Inamdar, who was also among the BJP legislators who led the 2017 protest, said the decision to write to the Chief Minister was taken after repeated reminders during local coordination meetings failed to yield results. “Officials do not pay attention to the suggestions made by MLAs. Arbitrary decisions are taken without understanding ground realities, and this ultimately affects both development work and common citizens,” Inamdar said.
He added that residents are being forced to run from office to office for routine matters, as access to senior officers remains limited, further aggravating public dissatisfaction.
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