The Wire on 22nd July published an article by turn-coat NCP worker Jay Kholiya on the opinion section of its website, where he wrote about his reason for leaving Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad or ABVP (a patriotic student organization in India, affiliated to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS). In the article, Kholiya writes on the reason why he had a “hriday parivartan” or change in ideology in 2019 (which, incidentally, was when the MVA government came to power in Maharashtra).
Jay Kholiya had joined ABVP in 2019 after he saw a Modi wave emerging in many parts of the country, and the powerful BJP-Shiv Sena coalition had formed the government in Maharashtra. According to several senior members of ABVP, the organization never believed that Jay was supporting the ABVP ideology, but nevertheless, rewarded him for the dedication he put in strengthening the student movement in South Mumbai. It was well known that he had left-leaning tendencies, but it was ignored because of ABVP’s work culture that encourages conflicting opinions and debates.
In the article, Kholiya claims to have organized a CAA-supporting rally in South Mumbai near CST station at Fort “under his leadership”, which is laughable, to say the least. The rally was organized by ABVP’s Mumbai unit, which overshadows all district units in the city. Nevertheless, several ABVP members from South Mumbai freshly remember Kholiya enthusiastically debating with people of opposing views regarding CAA on official Whatsapp groups of the unit. Kholiya has hogged the credit of organizing the event for his own political agenda and apparently used it while pitching for an NCP post.
Kholiya further claims that ABVP is a student wing of BJP. Which, ironically, he had himself disproved when the same was alleged by another former member of ABVP. When a former member of ABVP had a meltdown on the official Whatsapp group, the ex-member had claimed that ABVP was a student wing of Bharatiya Janata Party, to which Kholiya had sent a storm of news links reporting ABVP protests against BJP personalities. This change of colours is ridiculous, to say the least!
In his article on The Wire, he didn’t mention him joining the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) which has multiple charges of corruption after quitting ABVP. After leaving the Parishad, Kholiya had joined the NCP after getting an offer to serve as a ward level executive member followed by promotion to Secretary of Charkop Vidhan-Sabha constituency unit of NCP.
I have been in regular touch with Jay Kholiya despite him betraying everything ABVP stands for, and have shared plenty of messages with him in the past.
In one of his messages post quitting ABVP, he says that the reason he left ABVP was that he had been in talks with NCP. It is important to stress on the fact that his uncle is also an NCP lawmaker from Gujarat. When I asked him about the reason why he left the Parishad, and if he would stay in contact with us after choosing a path in politics, he frankly told me that he keeps his “personal and political lives separate”, boldly revealing that he only cares about power/ politics and nothing more.
After him leaving ABVP in February 2019, it was revealed that he was in talks with the NCP long before the CAA bill was passed in the parliament and that he used the passing of CAA as an exit strategy from ABVP so that nobody suspects him of political infidelity. By writing an article on The Wire regarding his departure from ABVP, he has made juvenile attempts to demonise the largest student movement in India, and save his own face by justifying his lust for power.
Apart from his ridiculous attempt to defame ABVP in the article, he also tries to acquire media limelight on himself to fulfill his greed for attention and fame. Though he tries his best to make people believe that he left for an imaginary “Hriday Parivartan”, it is quite obvious that he does everything with a desire for power and political mileage.
(The author is the District Social Media In-charge of ABVP South Mumbai)
