After winning the State Assembly polls in December last by a two-thirds majority, Narendra Modi and his cabinet colleagues had a smooth run till March 20. Everything passed off peacefully during that time with the RSS pracharak-turned-Chief Minister and his cabinet ministers attending to a number of meetings on social, economic and development works in the State.

BJP leaders, Opposition parties like the Congress and other smaller parties, all avoided creating hurdles for the administration. The Congress, which began its anti-Modi tirade following the Gujarat riots last year, could not withstand the defeat it faced at the hands of the BJP and kept away from engaging in muscle-building politics. But the fourth week of March changed everything for the Gujarat administration. The gruesome killing of Pandya in broad daylight led to speculation as to whether it was a political or a communal murder. Friends, family members and close associates of the slain leader till today cannot believe that Pandya made any enemies or that he had any enemies. Besides, he was a man who not only enforced firm discipline and punctuality in himself but also asked others to imbibe these qualities. At the same time, he was also loyal and trusted by the party. "His loss has shaken us all," said his associates who cannot come to terms with his mysterious murder. The ghastly killing of Pandya on March 20 has shocked his political godfather and former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel. Patel always treated Pandya as a younger brother and the latter would do whatever the former told him. Recently, when Deputy Prime Minister and Union Home Minister L. K. Advani came to attend a condolence meeting for Pandya, Patel along with Pandya’s father, Vithaldas Pandya, alleged that the killing was a political murder. A large number of party MLAs, ministers and top leaders agreed with Patel that the State Chief Minister’s conduct in sending a dedicated worker like Pandya into political oblivion and not bestowing normal courtesies upon him even after his death, are issues the BJP will have to look at seriously. The Patel camp is not alone in taking up the matter. It was the State Congress leader Amarsinh Chaudhary who demanded the resignation of Modi to make way for an independent investigation into the murder case.