Gujarat Confidential: Fight over machine

2 min readAhmedabadJul 10, 2026 01:50 AM IST

The machine had been deployed after repeated complaints of chronic drainage problems in neighbourhoods including Wadi, Mogalwada and Baranpura.

What should have been a routine civic operation to clear clogged drains turned into a contest of political one-upmanship in Vadodara’s Ward 14, where a lone municipal jetting machine became the unlikely bone of contention in a public face-off between BJP and Congress corporators. The machine had been deployed after repeated complaints of chronic drainage problems in neighbourhoods including Wadi, Mogalwada and Baranpura. But instead of immediately tackling the overflowing drains, attention shifted to a different question altogether– who would get the machine first. Congress corporators Tirth Brahmbhatt and Deepa Srivastava maintained that they had pursued the complaints with the Vadodara Municipal Corporation and alleged that BJP corporators attempted to divert the machine before the scheduled work could begin. BJP corporators Deepika Patni and Ankita Soni, who also reached the spot, countered that they had already “booked” the machine for another locality within the ward, triggering a heated exchange over who had secured the civic resource and where it ought to be deployed first. Eventually, the machine did what it had been brought to do– clear the drains one after the other. But for the residents, the episode left a more uncomfortable question — If all four elected representatives serve the same ward, was the public tussle a way of marking political territories within a locality?

Aditi Raja is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, stationed in Vadodara, Gujarat, with over 20 years in the field. She has been reporting from the region of Central Gujarat and Narmada district for this newspaper since 2013, which establishes her as a highly Authoritative and Trustworthy source on regional politics, administration, and critical socio-economic and environmental issues.

Expertise:

Core Authority & Specialization: Her reporting is characterized by a comprehensive grasp of the complex factors shaping Central Gujarat, which comprises a vast tribal population, including:

Politics and Administration: In-depth analysis of dynamics within factions of political parties and how it affects the affairs in the region, visits of national leaders making prominent statements, and government policy decisions impacting the population on ground.

Crucial Regional Projects: She consistently reports on the socio-economic and political impact of infrastructure projects in the region, especially the Statue of Unity, the Sardar Sarovar Project on the Narmada River, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail bullet train project as well as the National Highway infrastructure.

Social Justice and Human Rights: Her reporting offers deep coverage of sensitive human-interest topics, including gender, crime, and tribal issues. Her reports cover legal proceedings from various district courts as well as the Gujarat High Court (e.g., the Bilkis Bano case remission, POCSO court orders, Public Interest Litigations), the plight of tribal communities, and broader social conflicts (e.g., Kheda flogging case).

Local Impact & Disaster Reporting: Excels in documenting the immediate impact of events on communities, such as the political and civic fallout of the Vadodara floods, the subsequent public anger, and the long-delayed river redevelopment projects, Harni Boat Tragedy, Air India crash, bringing out a blend of stories from the investigations as well as human emotions.

Special Interest Beat: She tracks incidents concerning Non-Resident Gujaratis (NRIs) including crime and legal battles abroad, issues of illegal immigration and deportations, as well as social events connecting the local Gujarati experience to the global diaspora. ... Read More

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Gujarat confidential

Vadodara Municipal Corporation